Vincenzo, living in Malaysia, reminds us that it’s not just Red China that has a problem with press freedoms. Ten days ago, he blogged: ‘[With] the resignation of two senior editors due to Squatgate, the suspension of an east Malaysia tribune, and recently the suspension of a night edition daily, I’m wondering whether the same stuff will be applied to us lesser mortals who blog on the Internet’.
   While the Nostalgia blog says it is ‘quasi-fictional’, it is disturbing that there remains some government interference in the Malaysian press, which appears to be what Vincenzo is hinting at. Perhaps those in that country would care to let me know more.
   Partly by contrast, an interview with National Radio’s Kim Hill last week in New Zealand discussed the press freedoms at Al-Jazeera, where HRH the Emir of Qatar tends to be hands-off with the channel. The impression was the channel tended to be reasonably objective—and it was the first to interview Israelis on issues in the region, and Al-Arabiya, on which I have appeared, was regarded as an imitator who caught on to a good thing. Al-Jazeera International’s Sir David Frost (interviewed here in The Observer) estimates that several days’ worth of oil revenues in Qatar could keep Al-Jazeera going for a year.
   By western standards, HRH Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani’s powers may seem great, yet Qatar seems to operate efficiently, with a low crime rate.
   As a Confucianist, I like the sound of Qatar, though I have never visited there. It appears (although my sources are the official ones) that there is a ruler who treats his subjects fairly; in return, the state functions well. (A similar idea can apply in a democracy.) The minute the state interferes, people feel mistrust—leading to areas of rebellion.
   Al-Jazeera may be the first global media brand from the Middle East when its international service commences in May—which suggests to me that Doha and numerous other cities in the region will be this century’s bright stars, all through exhibiting a sense of freedom. Posted by Jack Yan, 01:56  permalink

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