THE ASIA MEDIA DIRECTORY

Update February 2010

edited by Alastair Carthew and Philip Behnke

Dear User!

For the media situation in Asia the second half of 2009 was in particular notable for the ongoing battle between Google and China, the largest single killing of journalists in one instance in the Philippines and the ongoing campaign by most Asian governments to control the Internet. But with governments rolling back restrictive media practices and laws, there were also a set of positive signs during the last months.

As the media scene in Asia is developing rapidly, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung’s Asia Media Directory is developing and growing, too. Besides the virtual update of the already included countries, this first 2010 update of the Media Directory also includes three new countries, namely Japan, Pakistan and Bhutan, making it now 18 countries overall.

Google’s threat to withdraw from China, despite it generating 23 percent of its income, because of alleged cyber attacks on websites by the government, was the ultimate battle so far over freedom of expression through the internet. While China pulled back on implementing its controversial “Green Dam” censorship apparatus it still has the world’s most sophisticated cyberspying and cyberattacking apparatus.

While that was a political, technical and ideological battle, in the Philippines the tragic killing of 30 journalists during a local election campaign, marked the blackest day in the recent history of journalism. It underscored the danger of journalists covering elections in Asia. From death threats in Nepal, attacks and kidnapping in Pakistan to threats and house arrest in Sri Lanka and Myanmar, 2009 was a sorry litany of attacks on individual journalists and media organizations around the region.

To set the scene for Asian media in the second half of 2009, a quick look at the overall global picture is necessary. The number of global cases of violence, physical assaults and threats increased in 2009 from 929 to 1456. Asia was second with 364 cases, mainly in Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Nepal, behind the Americas, with their large drug related killings, according to Reporters Without Borders’ 2009 report.

But it was not all bad news for the media. The number of journalists arrested in 2009 fell slightly, particularly in Asia. In Japan the new Democrat government started chipping away at the Kisha media clubs that give certain journalists privileged access to politicians and bureaucrats. Taiwan and China reached out to each other through journalistic channels. Pakistan said it would roll back media restrictions introduced by the previous administration. In Thailand the government said it would at least look at the lese majeste laws that have been heavily used against the media. Indonesia’s media continued to enjoy freedom of expression and South Korea and Taiwan remained dedicated to keeping media freedoms, albeit with some reservations, in places. And in Bhutan two new print products were launched in December 2009, making the media scene in this small Kingdom even more competitive.

Overall the media situation in Asia in 2009 did not immeasurably improve but there were and are positive signs. Of interest in a wider political/media sense will be Vietnam’s assumption of chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their approach to press freedom under Vietnam’s watch.

I hope you enjoy it!

Paul Linnarz, Director Media Programme Asia

DISCLAIMER