The murder of Canny Ong in Kuala Lumpur on June 13 opened up the proverbial can of worms on several fronts, with issues of public security and the police response hogging the headlines.

However, some sections of the media also stood accused of a shortfall in long-held editorial standards to withhold the identity of suspects in criminal investigations until they are charged in court.

In Strasbourg, France, the Council of Europe has expressed similar concerns over the growing commercialisation of information in this field.

On July 10, its committee of ministers issued a declaration on the provision of information relating to criminal proceedings by the media.