Media advocacy group reminds PN gov't against bringing in BN era 'legacies'

In conjunction with World Press Freedom Day, media advocacy group Gerakan Media Merdeka (Geramm) is urging the Perikatan Nasional (PN) government to bring the Malaysian Media Council Bill to fruition.

"We reiterate our stand that these efforts must be continued by the new PN government and it should be supported by all stakeholders involved," Geramm said in a statement today. 

The group and several other media associations have formed the Malaysian Media Council pro-tem committee which was tasked to draft the Malaysian Media Council Bill.

The then Communication and Multimedia minister Gobind Singh Deo had announced the formation of the Malaysian Media Council in January, a month before the Pakatan Harapan government collapsed.

Saifuddin Abdullah, who is currently at the helm of the ministry, had said the federal government was committed to upholding press freedom.

'Legacies' from BN era

While the country is adapting to the new norm including observing social distancing, Geramm stressed that "the restriction against any media outlet from attending press conferences at the Prime Minister's Office should not be revisited".

"Even with the current limitation of ensuring adherence to the social distancing guideline."

It also said that any Covid-19 prevention measures which have and will be taken must not be at the expense of the media's role as a means of check-and-balance to the government.

It noted a police probe against a South China Morning Post journalist recently over an article about operations on undocumented migrants at Kuala Lumpur's Masjid India.

Other challenges that the media practitioners were facing, Geramm said, are threats and exposure to cyber-attacks while covering live press conferences.

Despite the challenges and various uncertainties in the media industry, Geramm said the media's duty remained unchanged, which is to deliver accurate, transparent and balanced information to the audience.

"We must be prepared to face any eventualities. We must not be cowed by the circumstances and compromise the integrity of our journalistic work.

"All media practitioners are urged to hold on to the ethics of the profession, whether we are the field, in the office or at home," it said. - Mkini