The article, which is reminiscent of the First Amendment of the United States constitution, further prohibits the state from controlling or interfering with the broadcast of information through any medium. “The state shall not penalise any person for any opinion or view or the content of any broadcast, publication or dissemination,” the article says.
Freedom of the media has been separated from Freedom of Expression in the draft, clearing a grey area existing in the current constitution. Under Cap 79 of the current constitution, freedom of the media was perceived to derive from freedom of expression but not explicitly stated. But Cap 79 also contained several drawback clauses that subjected the said freedom of expression to certain limitations such as the need to maintain state security, public safety, public health, peaceful assembly and public order. Out of these drawback clauses, parliament was able to pass several punitive acts such as the Official Secrets Act, the Preservation of Public Order Act, the Peaceful Assembly Act, the Defamation Acts (criminal libel), and the Books and Newspapers Act, which all curtail media freedom.
