APW19980526.1320
NEWS STORY
05/26/1998 15:09:00
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MALAYSIA
Apply ethics when using technology, NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES
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Emerging Markets Datafile
May 23, 1998
NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES
ENGLISH
COPYRIGHT 1998 BY WORLDSOURCES, INC., A JOINT VENTURE OF FDCH,
INC. AND WORLD TIMES, INC. NO PORTION OF THE MATERIALS CONTAINED
HEREIN MAY BE USED
IN ANY MEDIA WITHOUT ATTRIBUTION TO WORLDSOURCES, INC.
TECHNOETHICS, or the written and unwritten codes of practice in
dealing with technology, is becoming imperative as we move towards
the Information age.
This is because the rapid development of technology is not only affecting changes in human thought and behaviour, but also stirring up new ethical issues and moral dilemmas.
The human culture is growing more mechanised. We wake up , eat,
work and sleep according to the dictates of the machines that are supposed to make our lives easier than those of our grandparents'.
Computer chips have been incorporated into everyday objects ever
since the introduction of integrated circuits in the late 1950s.
It has been said that today, an average home might have 40 chips
in different appliances, from washing machines to television sets
to alarm clocks.
And imagine having to go through a day at the office without the
help of the good old computer! In view of the growing dominance of
technology, the 20th century man has been considered as a
``sorcerer's apprentice'' who is becoming a slave of his erstwhile
servant.
This is the opinion of a lobby of intellectuals who feel
uncomfortable about the growing impact of modern technology on our
life.
They suggest that technological progress is getting out of hand,
and developing according to its own immanent laws.
It seems that machines, for example, are reshaping man to their
own images of stiffness, exactness and ``soullessness''.
According to them, technology has become ``natural'' to man so
much so that he can be referred to as techno, rather than homo
sapiens.
However, the other school of thought argues that the perspective
which personifies technology as an autonomous agent with
mythological properties, is a creation of humanists who have very
little insight into the structures of the technological order.
Technology in the broad sense of the word is one of the most
fundamental characteristics which define man within the family of
living beings.
Unlike animals which are defined by the harmonious way their
organs and functions are related to the environment, man largely
lacks such a grandiose tie.
His survival cannot depend on instinctive reactions only. He has
to learn to react and deal with new situations all the time.
And he can successfully do this by creating an artificial
environment for himself, thus allowing the technological milieu to survive.
In fact, with technology, man is in a position to provide a
decent living condition for many, if not all, life forms on earth.
It cannot be denied that technology also provides the platform
for man to destroy his living environment in an irreversible way,
and maybe all life on our planet.
The recent intransigence of a south Asian nation in flexing its
nuclear muscle is a case in point.
Nevertheless, as has been repeatedly stressed, technology is a
mere tool. It is neutral and has no internal criterion of
self-regulation.
Technology also does not exist in a vacuum but within the
context of a given culture with beliefs and accepted values,
presumably based on religious prescriptions.
The ability to make decisions pertaining to the use of
technology by referring to the religious criteria is what
technoethics is all about.
One of the most prominent aspects of info technology is the
global communications network, represented by the Internet.
Besides information, person-to-person communication in the form
of electronic mailing systems and chat groups are also available.
With its wide-reaching capability, the Internet is not only used
to retrieve information, but also to add information to the world
communications network.
One can find in it a plethora of input and experiences from
thousands of people of various cultures, creeds and religions.
The Internet caters to two groups of users, the information
providers and information consumers.
Thus, technoethics of the Internet, commonly referred to as
netiquette, has to be looked at from the two perspectives
separately.
As information providers, users need to be responsible in
disseminating the truth. This is evidently lacking in the global
communications network.
There are huge numbers of websites propagating immoral
activities, lies and character assassinations.
As a result, all kinds of scandals and slanders are circulating
in cyberspace.
Electronic poison letters are also rampant, despite some of the
writers and senders themselves claiming to be deeply religious.
Even the use of abusive language is justified on the basis of
defending their religious convictions.
The freedom of expression is sometimes taken to such an extent
so as to invade other people's privacy.
How many times have you found unsolicited electronic mail
forwarded to you by those who do not have the guts to reveal his or
her real identity?
To these phantom providers, please have a thought for
technoethics.
Frankly, without a proper perspective on the good and bad sides
of the global communications network, information consumers are at
the mercy of unscrupulous providers.
The lure of on-line pornography is tremendous. Many spend hours
daily surfing the Internet for erotic pictures and stories without
realising that they are wasting their time and money.
The worst part is that sometimes it is not of their own but,
rather, their department's or company's.
As for children, a new sordid phenomenon is unfolding on the
Internet, via the chat rooms.
It has been reported recently that cyber-paedophiles and
child-molesters are prowling these discussion groups.
They would `` insert'' themselves into the groups by furnishing a
respectable biodata, and slowly enticing the youngsters to indulge
in sexually explicit discussions.
So parents, beware! Do not think that once you leave your
children in front of the computer terminal, they are safe from
corrupt external influences.
The virtual prowlers can get into their bedrooms. The jungle is not necessarily out there anymore. Now it is right in our homes.
There is also no substitute for taking good care of your young
ones.
Guidance and supervision are still indispensable parts of proper
child-upbringing. Try to inculcate technoethics into them. The best
form of technoethics is one based on a strong faith in religion.
Decades ago, the German philospher Martin Heidegger wrote a
letter to his Japanese friend which was reproduced in the Yomiuri
newspaper.
In it he expressed his concern that none of today's cultural
traditions possesses the means to cope effectively with the
challenges posed by expanding modern technology.
It does not matter whether you are living in a western,
modernised society or eastern, developing society.
There is simply no culture suited to tackle the technological
onslaught.
What we can do is to responsibly monitor what is taking place in
present-day society, and interpret it in the light of our religious
and cultural traditions.
For a Muslim, this implies the willingness to internalise the
Quranic messages that man has been created not to indulge in vain
desires.
He is a representative of Allah on earth and is ultimately
responsible for any form of destruction - physical or moral.
The Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia is organising a
seminar which, inter alia, will deliberate on the issue of
technoethics.
The seminar entitled ``Multimedia and Islam'' will be held on
Tuesday and Wednesday at IKIM's Grand Hall. Members of the public
are invited to participate.
Copyright 1998 NEW STRAITS TIMES-MANAGEMENT TIMES all rights
reserved as distributed by WorldSources, Inc.
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