PM Anwar Ibrahim's response to police barring Malaysiakini reporters from covering an event is inadequate.
Has he forgotten that he is RESPONSIBLE for all actions of PUBLIC OFFICERS, including the police.
What Civil servants(EMPLOYEES of the Government under the Prime Minister of the Day) do or do not do is the responsibility of the government, the Executive Arm of the government.
Journalist and the PRESS should be able to cover all government events - and it is their DUTY to report or inform the public. The public may be kept out for some events because of space restrictions,etc - but NOT JOURNALIST. TRANSPARENCY.
Journalist and MEDIA plays an important role, and is duty bound to inform the public. At times, the SOURCES of information, demand confidentiality, and that is something that must be protected. Of course, before a report is publish, the media do ask for the persons or institutions covered for a response or comment - and many a time, there is nothing but silence.
Recently, reports based on SOURCES surfaced that the current Public Prosecutor/Attorney General may be removed, by an appointment to become a Federal Court Judge - and maybe the NEW Chief Judge of Malaya, responsible for the High Courts. Thanks to that media report, people could express their views, which was also covered by media. This may have prevented a SERIOUS ISSUE - as the Independence of the Public Prosecutor must be protected by, amongst others, the security of tenure - not to be removed until RETIREMENT AGE. Same applies for Judges. Hence, no sitting Judge should be removed by appointment to another position like the AG, and no Public Prosecutor removed prematurely by appointment to another position. [Sadly, the Prime Minister that advises the King on the appointment of Judges seem to have chosen 'SILENCE' - not clarifying speedily whether the current AG/PP was being considered as a Federal Court Judge or CJM]
Why was PM Anwar Ibrahim Transparent about this? A speedy response by the Prime Ministers or Ministers is a MUST when media reports are wrong...
Anwar, you do not have to 'reach out to the police..'. Your response would be to take action against those who barred the Malaysiakini reporters. Who is responsible? Was it an 'instruction' by your Home Minister?
Two weeks ago, police launched an investigation against Malaysiakini and three of its reporters over a news report on a possible Bukit Aman reshuffle.
The three reporters were summoned to give their statements at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters on Aug 9, where the investigating officer posed a direct question seeking the identity of the source quoted in the article.
In the police reshuffle issue, all that the police or the Home Minister/Prime Minister needed to do was to confirm whether a reshuffle was being considered or NOT - Why is the police going after the reporters, and trying to find their 'sources' of information?
Two weeks ago, police launched an investigation against Malaysiakini and three of its reporters over a news report on a possible Bukit Aman reshuffle. The three reporters were summoned to give their statements at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters on Aug 9, where the investigating officer posed a direct question seeking the identity of the source quoted in the article. However, the reporters stood firm in not revealing the source’s identity.
Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim emphasised that the media should not be restricted from reporting like the Malaysiakini journalists who were barred from attending a police event yesterday.
“I will reach out to the police as soon as possible so there are no restrictions whatsoever, like what happened to Malaysiakini,” he told reporters after attending an event at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC) today.
His remarks came after Malaysiakini was reportedly barred from attending an event organised by the police dubbed “PDRM Special Dialogue II”.
The event at the Sime Darby Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur yesterday began with closed-door sessions between the Bukit Aman Narcotics Department and stakeholders, including other law enforcement agencies under the home and finance ministries.
After those sessions, the media was supposed to be able to cover a launch ceremony by Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail scheduled for 12.30pm.
However, at around 11am, a press officer from the Bukit Aman police headquarters told Malaysiakini journalists present there that they were not allowed to enter.
This was despite Malaysiakini receiving an invitation for the event via email from Bukit Aman. The portal replied to the email within the same day with the details of two reporters assigned to cover the event.
Rights groups and MPs have raised questions, with Gerakan Media Merdeka (Geramm) urging the police to name the person who instructed Malaysiakini reporters to be barred from the event. - Malaysiakini, 23/8/2024
UPDATED 5.05PM | Added Malaysiakini being allowed to cover Saifuddin’s press conference later in the day.
Malaysiakini has been barred from covering a police event in Kuala Lumpur that was supposed to feature Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain today.
The event called “PDRM Special Dialogue II” began with closed-door discussion sessions between the Bukit Aman Narcotics Department and stakeholders, including other law enforcement agencies under the Home Ministry and Finance Ministry.
The media was supposed to be able to cover the launch by Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail scheduled at 12.30pm.
However, at around 11am, a press officer for Bukit Aman told Malaysiakini journalists that they were not allowed to enter the event.
This was despite Malaysiakini having received an invitation for the event via email from Bukit Aman, to which this portal replied within the same day with details of two reporters who were assigned to cover the event.
‘Following orders’
According to the officer, there was a screening process and only those who received a second invitation email on Aug 21 were allowed to cover the event.
However, when confronted by Malaysiakini reporters that there were other media personnel who came without an official invitation and were allowed ad hoc registration at the venue, he told the reporters “do not question about other media”.
The officer also indicated that the Bukit Aman Corporate Communications Unit could not let Malaysiakini in because they were “only following orders”, but declined to reveal where the order came from.
Malaysiakini has sent queries to Razarudin and Saifuddin, who is also scheduled to attend the event, for comments.
Later after the launching event, Malaysiakini was allowed to cover a press conference held by Saifuddin together with Deputy Inspector-General of Police Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay and Home Ministry secretary-general Ruji Ubi.
Malaysiakini has not been barred from covering events since after the 2018 general election.
The last recorded instance of the news portal being kicked out was in 2017 when one of its journalists was told to leave a Youth and Sports Ministry event.
Prior to that, Malaysiakini had often been barred from the Prime Minister’s Office, Treasury, the Defence Ministry, and press conferences at the MCA headquarters.
Probe on Mkini journos
Two weeks ago, police launched an investigation against Malaysiakini and three of its reporters over a news report on a possible Bukit Aman reshuffle.
The three reporters were summoned to give their statements at the Dang Wangi district police headquarters on Aug 9, where the investigating officer posed a direct question seeking the identity of the source quoted in the article.
However, the reporters stood firm in not revealing the source’s identity.
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