00:01The network school in Forest City has ceased operations, with one of its buildings sealed off following the revocation of
00:09NSO Malaysia Sendirian Berhad's business license by the Iskandar Puteri City Council, or MBIP.
00:16Enforcement officers arrived at around 11.40am on Wednesday, and were seen inspecting the premises before sealing off one of
00:23the entrances and putting up a closure notice.
00:26The signboard bearing the network school name at the entrance had already been removed before the enforcement officers arrived.
00:33At the lobby of a nearby hotel, several foreigners believed to be network school participants were seen saying their goodbyes,
00:40some hauling their luggage.
00:42Several other signboards bearing the network school name outside the hotel have also been covered.
00:47MBIP announced on Tuesday that it had revoked the business license of NSO Malaysia, ordering the company to cease all
00:56operations effective Wednesday.
00:58The council said investigations found the company had failed to comply with licensing conditions and the approved use of its
01:05premises.
01:06MBIP said the company, which operates a campus at Teluk Bintang in Pulao Satu, had been served with a stop
01:12business notice under the MBIP Trade, Business and Industrial Licensing Bylaws, 2018.
01:19The council also revoked its advertising license after finding the business activities carried out at the premises differed from those
01:27approved under its office use license.
01:29The network school is a co-living and co-working technology commune, with memberships starting at US$1,500 a
01:37month.
01:38It was founded by American entrepreneur Balaji Srinivasan and operates as a startup society for digital nomads, remote workers and
01:46others.
01:47The network school had come under scrutiny following allegations on social media that it included participants from Israel, which does
01:54not have diplomatic relations with Malaysia.
01:56Last week, the Immigration Department carried out an inspection and found that members of the network school had valid travel
02:04documents.
02:05However, on Tuesday, Immigration Department Director General Datuk Zakaria Shaban revealed that 19 foreigners linked to the school remain unaccounted
02:15for.
02:16The department was investigating whether they are still in Malaysia or have left the country through illegal routes.
02:22Concerns have also been raised over Srinivasan's mission, outlined in his 2022 book, The Network State, to set up new
02:30decentralized communities separate from existing nation-states, which some social media users said posed risks to Malaysia's sovereignty.
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