While awaiting the independent newspaper Utusan Rakyat to come to fruition, National Union of Journalists (NUJ) president Hata Wahari has announced another ‘project' - digital newspaper Harian Malaysia .

According to Hata, the subscription-based 24-page newspaper is scheduled to be launched next month and can be accessed at http://www.harianmalaysia.my .

NONE "As a journalist, I need a platform to write. More so when it is not certain when Utusan Rakyat can begin publication as we are still awaiting a permit (from the Home Ministry)," said Hata.

Hata, the editorial adviser of Harian Malaysia , announced the emergence of the newspaper, which will focus on social issues, on his Facebook page last week.

The senior journalist, who is facing an internal inquiry by his employer Utusan Malaysia , hopes to make Harian Malaysia "the answer to press freedom in Malaysia".

The status of Utusan Rakyat - for which PKR vice-president Nurul Izzah Anwar applied for a permit on March 4 - is still unclear.

When contacted today, Hata explained that Harian Malaysia will initially appear once a week and cover all issues, except world and business news.

To access it, a reader has to pay a subscription of RM120 a year or RM60 for six months, equivalent to RM10 a month.

Hata did not want to reveal further details of the ownership or editorial team for the moment, explaining that discussions were still going on.

The sample edition of Harian Malaysia on the Internet discusses the capacity of the Employees Provident Fund to pay a dividend of six percent.