Wth scarcity of resources, Aliran launched its modest Aliran Quarterly in 1980 with the primary aim of providing analyses and commentaries of political, social and economic developments that occurred in the country, says Mustafa K Anuar.
It was generally felt that analyses of this nature were crucial and much needed particularly in an environment where the mainstream press was unable or unwilling to do so due to legal constraints or political pressures from the ruling elite, who own and/or control the press.
Besides, not many other local magazines in the market offered editorial content that was analytical and critical. Many of these publications focused on entertainment, fashion and other frivolous matters.
Furthermore, the internet did not make its appearance in Malaysia until 1995. This meant that alternative voices were scarce in the public domain, depriving the general public of an array of views on public interest issues.
Significantly, Mahathir Mohamed became prime minister on 16 July 1981, marking the beginning of a 22-year rule that generally frowned upon, if not criminalised, criticism of his administration as well as other opinions that were not aligned with the prime minister’s.
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Financial scandals and political crises litted the Mahathir era, leaving many concerned Malaysians searching for information and analyses from the few sources available in the country in their endeavour to get a handle on things that were happening. It is in this context that Aliran Monthly played a significant role in keeping the public abreast of what was taking place and commenting on issues of public interest.
The BMF scandal of the mid-1980s that rocked the country is one example. The now defunct Bank Bumiputra not only lost some RM2.5bn in this loan scandal, but also one of its officers, Jalil Ibrahim, who was murdered in Hong Kong while investigating this financial scandal.
Yet another scandal was the Maminco fiasco that involved the RM2 Maminco Sdn Bhd in the government’s failed attempt to corner the world’s tin market in the mid-1980s. This blunder caused an estimated loss of at least RM1.6bn, which left many Malaysians concerned.
Banning or suspending publications seemed to be a favourite measure taken by the Mahathir administration, frustrating publishers and writers alike. In 1983, the government suspended the monthly magazine, Nadi Insan, published by the Institute of Social Analysis. In another case, the organ of the then Parti Sosialis Rakyat Malaysia, Mimbar Sosialis, was suspended in January 1986 for having published a critical poem, ‘Kaum Tani’. Three months later, the owner of the English language daily, The Echo, decided to cease publication after he reportedly came under heavy pressure from the Home Ministry over a period of time.
Foreign publications were not spared either. The Mahathir administration imposed a three-month suspension order against the Asian Wall Street Journal (AWSJ) and cancelled the work permits of its correspondents, John Berthelsen and Raphael Pura, who subsequently were served an expulsion order. The AWSJ irked the government because of its critical reporting of the business dealings of the finance minister (related to the United Malayan Banking Corporation deals) and the deputy home minister as well as the Maminco fiasco.
