The publication permit renewal application of popular weekly tabloid Eksklusif has been brought to the attention of Home Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, his deputy Zainal Abidin Zin said today.

"The ministry has not rejected the application. It has now been sent to the higher authority and the matter is still being discussed," Zainal told malaysiakini at the Parliament lobby this afternoon.

The tabloid's publishing permit expired on April 15 and its latest issue which was due in the news stands last Friday has been suspended.

When contacted this morning, a staff at Kumpulan Karangkraf, the magazine publisher, expressed hope that the tabloid would resume its publication by the end of this week.

"We have been warned by the Home Ministry for publishing articles that were pro-opposition and linked to former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim," he said, refusing to elaborate further.

Malay daily Berita Harian last Saturday quoted Zainal as saying that the ministry will only renew the tabloid's permit if its publisher agreed to heed the ministry's warning.

According to Zainal, a few officers from the ministry had earlier warned Eksklusif for publishing articles which could create hatred among certain quarters. He added that the publisher of the tabloid ignored the warning.

The tabloid, which has been the closest rival to PAS-owned newspaper Harakah , was chalking up circulation of tens of thousand copies, hitting 100,000 at its peak.

It has become a key alternative weekly tabloid since Harakah's publication was slashed from eight issues to only two a month.

In a related development, monthly magazine [#1] Tamadun[/#]

, last Friday, successfully renewed its annual publishing permit which also expired this month.

According to its editor-in-chief Muttaqin Amaluddin, the magazine's permit was renewed after he met a senior official of the ministry, Tengku Mahmood Tengku Ismail, to discuss problems related to its permit and to clarify certain issues that the ministry deemed "controversial".

Muttaqin added that the magazine's May and June issues will be published as scheduled.

The magazine received a warning in October last year for publishing articles that "criticised the public" and "hurt certain parties".

Meanwhile, a new independent tabloid Bebas was launched yesterday, with its front page headlined Jangan Gila Kuasa ("Don't be power crazy").

Priced at RM1.50 per issue, the Malay language tabloid promises to be an effective alternative to mainstream newspapers, offering critical commentaries and balanced reporting.

National news agency Bernama quoted the bi-weekly's publisher-cum-editor Yahaya Ismail as saying that the target groups of the tabloid are politicians, academics, professionals and students.

He was also quoted to have denied that it was being published to cash in on the upcoming Umno elections next month.

Yahaya is a veteran and sometimes controversial political commentator. One of his works is a satirical short story, "Maharaja Beruk" ("Ape Emperor"), which lampooned Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

He also wrote a book which exposed the alleged corruption of former Terengganu mentri besar Wan Mohtar Ahmad.

However, Yahaya has lately focused his writings on attacking sacked deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim with his book, "62 Dalil Mengapa Reformasi Anwar Gagal" ("62 Reasons Why Anwar's Reformasi Failed").