Don’t ban media from court on feeble grounds, says Bar

The media was barred from covering a case at the Magistrate’s Court in Shah Alam as the charges against a policeman were said to be ‘sensitive’.

PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Bar today said it was concerned that a Magistrate’s Court in Shah Alam had recently barred the media from covering the trial of a cop accused of falsifying documents in a drug case related to him.

In a statement, president Abdul Fareed Abdul Gafoor said the Bar recognised that it was the discretion of the court to decide on whether or not the facts of the case justify the conduct of proceedings “in camera”.

However, he said it was concerned over a deputy public prosecutor’s (DPP) application to have the media barred in the policeman’s case because the charges that were to be read against the officer were said to be sensitive and should not be reported by the media.

Fareed said the Bar was aware that the court could ban media coverage out of interest of justice, public safety, and national security, or for the protection of vulnerable classes of persons, or sensitive information being leaked out.

“Exceptions that include those mentioned above should not be abused on feeble grounds, such as the sensitivity of a particular charge, as advanced by the DPP in this case.

“The DPP, in executing the powers of the public prosecutor, plays a crucial role in balancing the freedom of the press, protecting the natural right of the public to know, as well as upholding the law.

“The rule of law demands equality in the dispensation of justice, and one should abide by this process of law, regardless of his/her position or stature in life. Serving the public interest should always be paramount.

“The Bar, therefore, calls for a more judicious exercise of this discretion, and a further bolstering of the law and its application in this area,” Fareed said.

On January 29, the media was barred from covering the trial of the cop who was one of the individuals previously accused of arresting young men in Sungai Buloh to extort from their family members.

Before the hearing began, DPP Nur Syazwanie Marizan said the charges that were to be read against the officer were sensitive and should not be reported by the media.

Magistrate Hanie Dzatul Akhmar Zulkefli then instructed everyone who was not related to the case to leave the courtroom, before proceeding with the case.

The policeman was released on a RM5,000 bail, with the DPP saying the next court hearing would be held “somewhere in March”. - FMT