Suaram: Cops should wear name-tags at rallies

While the police force has taken upon itself to issue special tags to journalists covering Pakatan Rakyat's rally on Saturday, human rights group Suaram said the police would do well to display their own name-tags instead

"It is extremely important for the police to wear their badges bearing their names and identification numbers,” said Suaram executive director E Nalini, in a statement yesterday.

“Police identification was the major issue in so far as Bersih 3.0 rally was concerned, whereby victims of police violence had failed to identify the aggressors who were on duty without their identification (tags).”

Nalini also questioned the need for police to issue press tags when media personnel already hold government-issued ones, adding that the new move will not guarantee the safety of journalists.

"What the police should be concerned about is not how to tag the media, but rather to initiate a standard operating procedure to deal with the media.

“(This is) to enable and protect the media in their duty to cover (events) and disseminate information ... without interference and aggression from the police.”

Nalini said the police - apart from “protecting” journalists - must also ensure the safety of participants at the rally, planned to be held at Stadium Merdeka in Kuala Lumpur from 2pm to 5pm. 

Legal right to ‘reasonable access’

PKR vice-president N Surendran in a separate statement also reacted with outrage to the police move to issue press tags.

Saying this is an attempt to restrict press freedom, he demanded that this be withdrawn.

"The media must be free to cover news events at any place without hindrance or cumbersome procedures,” he said. 

"Neither the police nor any other state body should be allowed to control or restrict the press in their coverage of public events by the issuance of tags or passes.

"The issuance of the tags create a dangerous precedent by which the authorities could control the dissemination of news by giving or withholding special passes.”

Surendran added the move goes against Section 24 of the Peaceful Assembly Act 2012 which requires the authorities to provide “reasonable access” to journalists at assembly venues.

"It also contravenes Article 10(1)(a) of the Federal Constitution which guarantees freedom of expression, including press freedom," he said.

Instead of trying to identify journalists, Surendran said the correct response would be to expeditiously investigate and prosecute police personnel involved in criminal misconduct against anyone during assemblies.