KUALA LUMPUR – While the media has the right to report news, the police are equally obligated to investigate if a complaint is filed, Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said today.
Addressing a press conference earlier, Fahmi, who is also the government spokesman, said that there is no “contradiction” between the two matters as both sides are merely executing their duties.
“Journalists have a right to report, but based on the law, police also have a right to investigate.
“If you (journalists) come up with a report and you stand by your report as well as your sources, then answer when you’re questioned by police. It’s not an issue,” the Lembah Pantai MP said.
Fahmi also acknowledged that the Malaysian Code of Ethics for Journalists, which his ministry launched in February, details the importance of protecting source confidentiality and privacy.
“At the same time, as I said previously, (journalists under police investigation) should cooperate with police because in terms of the law, if there is a police report (filed against a story), police have to conduct investigations.”
Yesterday, three journalists were summoned to the Dang Wangi police headquarters as part of a probe into an online news portal’s report on alleged high-profile police transfers.
Among the questions posed to the trio, their lawyer Rajsurian Pillai said, were queries about the identity of the source quoted in the report.
The lawyer said this question was not answered as it would violate journalism ethics, with legal precedent suggesting reporters are not required to disclose their sources.
Currently, police are conducting investigations under Section 505(b) of the Penal Code for publishing material likely to cause public alarm and Section 233 of the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 for misuse of network facilities.
On Tuesday, police announced that they were investigating an online news portal over a report claiming the impending transfers of several high-ranking officers out of the force to agencies under the Home Ministry.
The investigation follows one police report filed over the matter.
The news site, citing sources, named Deputy Inspector-General of Police Datuk Seri Ayob Khan Mydin Pitchay and Bukit Aman criminal investigation department director Datuk Seri Mohd Shuhaily Mohd Zain among the senior officers slated to be transferred to other agencies under the Home Ministry.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Razarudin Husain, who the report stated did not respond to requests for insight, subsequently dismissed the article as “fake news”. – August 10, 2024