Malaysia seeks to ban illegal download sites

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Thousands of Malaysians participated Sunday in an online protest against the government's efforts to block access to 10 popular websites often used to illegally download movies, TV shows and music .

This is the largest initiative to combat Internet hacking in Malaysia, long accused by industry officials of not being sufficiently challenged by the rampant sale of DVDs and DVDs. Pirated CDs.

The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission, a government regulator, said Friday that it wanted Internet service providers to block 10 websites violating copyright laws.

Since then, more than 6,500 people have joined a Facebook page that overturned the decision, with some claiming the government had reneged on its promise not to censor the Internet.

"I think it's the most stupid thing ever," wrote Satila Suhaimi Kelly, one of the Facebook group members. "I use (the websites) to share my personal photos and videos with my friends and family around the world."

The ban appeared to be erratically applied by Malaysian Internet providers. Most users complained on Saturday that they could not surf the sites, but some were able to do so before Sunday. Others have used other routes to bypbad the ban.

Web sites include Pirate Bay, a Swedish-based website that has been sued by entertainment companies in Europe for copyright infringement claims.

The Multimedia Commission defended the ban, saying the Malaysian Ministry of Internal Trade had asked it to help enforce copyright rules. He denied that the move was tantamount to censorship.

Malaysian filmmaker Norman Abd Halim told The Star newspaper that he welcomed this decision.

"The unauthorized use of copyrighted works destroys the industry," the paper said.

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