PAS-owned Harakah Daily must apologise to Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim for making false claims linking him to Israel, its former editor-in-chief Zulkifli Sulong said, but Putrajaya’s move to revoke the publication’s media tags was too severe.

Zulkifli said the party mouthpiece did go “overboard” by linking Anwar to Israel.

“Anwar has done so much to support Palestinians’ cause, but Harakah made it seem as if Anwar is with Israel by publishing a photo of him with an Israel flag in the background and the Palestine flag behind PAS ulama chief (Ahmad Yahya).

“That is wrong. It sent the wrong message,” Zulkifli, who had been with Harakah from 1987 to 2013, told The Malaysian Insight.

“By right Harakah should apologise to Anwar because they had gone overboard.

“If I was the chief editor, I will admit the mistake, even if my employee did it, and I will apologise,” he said.

Zulkifli was commenting on a Harakah’s report titled “Malaysia di bawah Anwar ragu-ragu sokong Palestine”, which translates to “Unclear if Malaysia under Anwar supports Palestine”.

Yesterday, Anwar called out PAS leaders in parliament for using the newspaper to spread defamatory statements against his administration.

Anwar, who is also finance minister, accused the opposition’s Ulama Council of making false claims by linking him to Israel.

Zulkifli said Harakah’s editorial stance reflects PAS’ political affiliation.

Given that PAS was with Perikatan Nasional and the opposition, Zulkifli said it would be Harakah’s motive to portray Anwar in a bad light.

He said portraying a Malay-Muslim politician with anything linked to Judaism or Israel, particularly amid the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, was anything but complementary and could undercut public support – more so when it was false.

He, however, said revoking the media accreditations of Harakah reporters was not appropriate.

“This is not good for the government that champions reforms, especially on freedom. It should not be to that extent (of revoking reporters’ media accreditations).

“Maybe a strong and stern warning should have been given, but not to the extent of revoking the media tags,” he said.

He said when he was Harakah chief editor, especially from 1999 to 2001, the publication’s circulation reached nearly 400,000 copies per edition.

Harakah had been a strong advocate of Anwar in his Reformasi days and when PAS was PKR’s ally. It is now in Perikatan Nasional with Bersatu and Gerakan, making up the opposition pact.

Following the prime minister’s remarks yesterday, the Information Department, under the purview of the Communications and Digital Ministry, revoked the media passes of Harakah reporters.

PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari said Harakah received a letter from the Information Department yesterday, requesting its reporters return their official media tags.

The Information Department’s decision to revoke Harakah reporters’ media tags would restrict their access to government premises, including Parliament.

Today, Communication and Digital Minister Fahmi Fadzil said news organisations who had their government accreditation cards revoked could file appeals.

Fadhli, who is also Pasir Mas lawmaker, told The Malaysian Insight today the news from the minister was welcome.

“We were not pleased with the government’s action yesterday to revoke the media tags of Harakah journalists.

“But the minister has said the decision can be appealed and we will do so,” he said.

Harakah’s management was unavailable for comment.

Up the transparency

The Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) expressed serious concerns about ethical reporting and actions of the Information Department to revoke Harakah staff’s media tags.

CIJ’s executive director Wathshlah G. Naidu said it is of grave concern that there was no transparency about how the decision was made.

“It is unclear if the Harakah media group was given the opportunity to present their case; take any corrective actions such as removing the impugned content; or how they could access their right to appeal the decision,” she said.

Wathshlah said CIJ’s concerns were amplified by the Information Department’s failure to provide specific reasons for its decision.

She said the department’s vague statement that the publication had “gone against journalism ethics” did not meet acceptable standards of natural justice and due process.

“The government must uphold international standards of legitimacy, necessity and proportionality in its decision to restrict or censor the media.

“We reiterate our call for the government to be more transparent about how decisions are made, especially when it relates to restricting media access.

“Failure to uphold international standards and due process raises serious questions about the government’s commitment to media freedom and freedom of expression,” she said.

She also called for the establishment of the Malaysian Media Council to be expedited.

She said the nation needs it as a transparent, self-regulatory body for the media industry.

Wathshlah said in this case, a media council would have been in a better position to deliberate the matter and provide necessary mechanisms to review and resolve the dispute in an impartial, independent and transparent manner, with focus on ethical reporting and due process.

She said CIJ hoped to see a commitment from the government and the media to enshrine press freedom and preserve the media in its role as the fourth estate. – November 8, 2023.