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Malaysia's Mahathir Says There is No Freedom in U.S. and U.K.
KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 3 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad of Malaysia, during a dialogue with civil society members, said on Thursday that the United States and United Kingdom had no freedom of the press.
During the one and a half hour session with representatives of political parties, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the press, the Prime Minister alluded to an "unseen hand" that controlled the media in the two countries.
"Speaking about the U.S. and the U.K., we admit, they do have a free press, but the question is who owns them. I don't dare mention names but we know who they are. What is published is always on the side of the owner of the media as they have their own interests.
"Have you ever seen them report positively on Islamic countries? There is no freedom in the U.S. and the U.K. or anywhere else due to the 'unseen hand'. There is only one opinion, theirs.
"We should not be carried away by their rhetoric and our own people should not support them. We have proof of their injustices they do not have freedom," he lambasted.
Mahathir was responding to a comment by a Party Islam Se-Malaysia (PAS) member on the issue of freedom of the press in Malaysia. During the dialogue, PAS vice-president Mustaffa Ali questioned Mahathir on his views.
Mahathir had delivered a speech at the Malaysian Institute of Islamic Understanding's forum on the theme "Tolerance - the Malaysian model".
Ali told Mahathir that while he constantly "criticized the United States and the United Kingdom on many things, yet you agree that parties in the two countries make no political speeches after elections unlike in Malaysia.
"They don't need speeches there because they have a free press." Ali said, criticizing a ban imposed by Mahathir's government on political gatherings and demonstrations Malaysia-wide.
"We, on the other hand, have not been allowed to proceed with political gatherings and we lack freedom of the press, therefore the space is very restricted. The government is not tolerant of differing views and we need to correct this," the opposition leader said.
In an apparent attack on the opposition PAS, Mahathir said the party had infiltrated pre-school, schools and universities to poison the minds of Malay students.
"School children are given a plate covered with paper and they are asked to draw a circle and paint green in the center," he said. The PAS logo is a green circle representing the moon.
The Malaysian government, since elections in 1999, has shown a strong aversion to the color green and has even urged the national Petroleum Company (PETRONAS) to change the color of its logo, currently green.
Petronas, however, has refused to do so.
Mahathir's ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO) considers PAS the main threat to its 43 years of political dominance.
The UMNO lost 22 parliamentary seats in 1999 elections, while the PAS more than tripled the number of its seats to 27. Mahathir is the UMNO's president.
The opposition party, in elections, also retained control of Kelantan state and neighboring Terengganu in the northern Malay Muslim heartland.
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