Cold War style radio service for Sarawak
Dissent in Sarawak has gone on air via shortwave radio, with the launching of Radio Free Sarawak transmitting from London twice a day. The aim is to reach people in the interior of Sarawak, where shortwave radio is still an important medium and far from being an anachronism in an age of FM radio, Internet broadcasting, and podcasts.
The broadcasts are, of course, also available live on the Internet and as downloadable podcasts: Episode 1 and Episode 2
Radio Free Sarawak, in name and spirit, recalls the days of the Cold War, when dissenters to authoritarian regimes were forced to go underground and news came via western-backed radio stations such as the relatively neutral BBC, or the more propagandistic Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. Newer stations of interest in Asia are Radio Free Asia (in Khmer, Vietnamese, Chinese and other languages), Voice of Mesopotamia (in Kurdish), Democratic Voice of Burma, Radio Farda (in Farsi), Echo of Hope (in Korean) and Falun Gong radio (in Chinese).
The Sarawak broadcasts are transmitted on the shortwave frequency of 7590 kHz, at the high end of the 41 metre band, from 6.30-7.30am and repeated at 6-7pm on 15869 kHz in the 16 metre band. While reception should be fair at the 41m band, it will probably be more crackly at 16m if past experience is any guide (atmospheric conditions willing).
Malaysiakini reports that the programmes will carry content produced by local NGOs and community leaders. Malaysiakini’s anonymous source said: “We found that many use short-wave radios to tune in to RTM broadcasts.”
