Interesting reading: The banned books list

The article by Ivan Yeo is basically discussing about the huge amount of books that are banned in Malaysia. It is said that all kinds of books that are noted to be "obscene" based on the title itself are bound to be ban if not already in Malaysia. Even certain comics such as Conan have been banned in the past. Ivan then continue to say that the government is doing the Malaysian readers a favor by banning the books. He says that it is indirectly telling us that those books are the recommended readings. As this is the 21st century, there are many other means of reading besides the traditional books- mainly being online reading.

In my opinion, it is a problem publishing or importing books in Malaysia as there are many rules and regulations that must be obeyed. I as a Malaysian personally feel that there are ridiculous amounts of rules that are applied just for the title itself. Some of which that are stated in the article such as the title cannot contain the word sexy or in Malay "seksi". Failure to comprehend with the rules could result in a fine of not more than twenty thousand ringgit or even imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years. Even possessing a prohibited book will can be fined for not more than five thousand rinngit. These are the rules that are obtain from the Malaysian Printing presses and Publication Act 1984. I strongly believe that the Malaysian publication law should be less strict today as there are so many other unstoppable means of reading today especially on the internet. It is becoming rather pointless to imply these rules.

 In conclusion, i believe that certain books should be continued to be banned such as those with pornography or those with obscene picture because after all, Malaysia is an Islamic country. For those who are non-Muslims and are open minded, thankfully there are other means of reading besides the ones on the bookshelf. The present day has gifted us with the invention of the internet that has e-book and e-readers as stated by Ivan himself in the article. 

References

Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (c.8) Malaysia: Percetakan Nasional Malaysia