Open debate signals Malaysia's maturing democracy, says BBC producer

Free Malaysia Today

2 days ago

BBC's Charlie Taylor has commended Malaysia for its 'maturing democracy', saying a big part of the freedom of speech afforded to Malaysians was in being able to speak truth to power.
PETALING JAYA : Malaysia's growing press freedom tells of its maturing democracy, says Charlie Taylor, producer of BBC World Questions, ahead of tonight's first-ever public debate show in the country.
Taylor, who has been with BBC for three decades, said the broadcaster has held similar events in Seoul, Tokyo, Cape Town and Lithuania.
He said Malaysia, the current Asian chair, stands out for its open, on-the-record debate, something not all countries in Southeast Asia permit.
'Not every country in Southeast Asia could do it. They don't all have the freedoms that you have in Malaysia where you can allow a sort of open debate to take part,' he told FMT in an interview.
'I think, having met quite a few Malaysians in the last few days, people are fairly forthright. It's hard to find someone without an opinion,' he added.
BBC's World Questions programme, a global extension of the long-running 'Question Time' in the UK, will be recorded before a live audience at 6pm today, at the Petaling Jaya Performing Arts Centre.
He said the forum was about empowering local voices for a global audience.
'My understanding is that freedoms here (in Malaysia) have increased over recent years and testament to that is the fact that we have been welcomed in to do our debate—an open debate,' Taylor told FMT in an interview.
'The prime minister (Anwar Ibrahim) said he wants to see Malaysia as a maturing democracy. That maturing democracy is going on, and a big part of that is freedom of speech and being able to speak truth to power,' he added.
Taylor said the format allows the public to pose questions to a panel of prominent political and public figures on national and international issues.
The panellists are deputy minister of domestic trade and cost of living Fuziah Salleh, Tricia Yeoh from the University of Nottingham Malaysia's School of Politics and International Relations, Bersatu MP Wan Ahmad Fayhsal, a former deputy unity minister, and Vilashini Somiah, head of Universiti Malaya's gender studies programme.
The forum will be chaired by veteran BBC journalist, Jonny Diamond.
Taylor said the BBC did not come to Malaysia at the government's invitation but selected the country for its regional importance and openness to public discourse.
'No one approached us. We thought it was time,' Taylor said. 'We do 12 editions of this programme a year, and we move it around so we get different perspectives from different places.'
Taylor said the programme's main objective was to allow local people to voice their questions on a global platform.
'We want to open a window on Malaysia so people get a deeper insight.
'We don't really decide what the questions are. The audience does,' he said, adding that questions may relate to any topic that may affect the nation, including corruption and tariffs.
World Questions has been running since 2015, although it builds on a BBC tradition that dates back 60 to 70 years, he said.
Taylor said the country's political and media landscape makes this the right time for such a forum.
'We want to open a window on a fascinating country and we want to hear people discuss their ideas in front of people who have different opinions.
'So we hope to have a difference of opinion, not argument and to listen to other people properly with respect,' he said.