Six Al Jazeera staff members, including five Australians, are being questioned by Malaysia police about their investigative documentary on the arrest of migrant workers published on the 101 East program.
SBS Dateline understands the staff members arrived at Bukit Aman police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur Friday morning for questioning. They were still with police by the time of publication.
Malaysian police are investigating the Al Jazeera staff members for sedition, defamation and violation of the country’s Communications and Multimedia Act. This is a criminal offence in Malaysia.
The Malaysian authorities said the report was being inaccurate, misleading and unfair.
After denouncing the documentary as “” Defence Minister Ismail Saabri said that Al Jazeera should “apologise to all Malaysians.”
Malaysian police launched the investigation against the staff members this week. Malaysia’s immigration department has also issued a search notice for awhose name, details and photos match those of a migrant worker interviewed in the documentary.
The documentary, Locked Up in Malaysia’s Lockdown, details how thousands of undocumented migrant workers have been arrested during raids in areas under tight lockdowns.
Al Jazeera claims their staff members have been targeted by the police with sustained online abuse, including death threats and doxxing over social media.
“Al Jazeera is deeply concerned that its staff are now subject to a police investigation,” the organisation said in a statement.
“In a world in which the media face increasing threats, Al Jazeera calls for media freedom and the right to report freely without intimidation.
“Al Jazeera calls upon the Malaysian authorities to desist from initiating any criminal investigation into its professional, impartial journalism.”
Malaysia press freedom
Peter Greste, a journalist and professor at the University of Queensland said their only ‘crime’ seems to be embarrassing the government.
“I understand governments are in difficult positions, but they need to accept that this is what good journalism does, it asks difficult questions,” he said.
“In that respect, this is a very dangerous attack on the fundamentals of press freedom.”
In 2013, Mr Greste was detained in Eygpt for 400 days for his reporting in the region.
“It shouldn’t make a difference if they are Australia, or Malaysian, it doesn’t matter what their nationality is, the basic problem is that anyone who is doing responsible journalism should be allowed to do their work, even if it is uncomfortable journalism.”
The Human Rights Watch this week said Malaysian authorities are increasingly responding to criticism as a crime.
“Malaysia’s Perikatan Nasional government is increasingly responding to public criticism by carrying out abusive investigations on specious charges,” said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director.
“Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin should recognize that everyone has a right to criticise their government without fear of investigation or prosecution.”
As well as the Al Jazeera report, Malaysian authorities are investigating several other reporters for stories they have published, including for another report on immigration raids during COVID-19.
Mr Greste said the instances of Malaysian authorities questioning reports are worrying.
“All of this suggests a deeply troubling shift in Malaysia’s attitude toward press freedom.”
In 2016, an ABC Four Corners crew were detained by Malaysian police after trying to question then-Prime Minister Najib Razak over a corruption scandal. Reporter Linton Besser and camera operator Louie Eroglu were apprehended after approaching Mr Razak on the street. They were eventually released and able to return to Australia.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement:
"The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is providing assistance in accordance with the Consular Services Charter to a number of Australians in Kuala Lumpur. Owing to our privacy obligations we will not provide further comment."
