A group of journalists and activists have launched a campaign to protest the Home Ministry's suspension of news weekly The Heat .

The informal group calling itself Gerakan Media Marah (Movement of Angry Media) or Geramm, will campaign on Facebook and Twitter starting Monday, and wearing red on Fridays.

Friday was selected as it is the day The Heat would have been published if not for the suspension.

"Red is also a symbol of  heat and the rage of the people at the government," said the group's secretariat in a statement today.

The journalists from the nation's major news portals, and supported by several community activists, held a press conference last night to launch their campaign.

"Geramm urges media practitioners - including part-time writers columnists and employees of media companies - to join our campaign beginning today to raise the issue of serious violations of media freedom in the country.

"My fellow reporters and editors are also urged to start a campaign on their own initiative as appropriate to their respective organisations.

"Now, we have no right to remain silent and it is time we all insist on protesting such violations," it said.

Press freedom forum

Other events planned include a press freedom forum next week in Kuala Lumpur and a two-week signature campaign for a petition to the ministry.

They are also planning a main event to be announced next week.

Their rage concerns the suspension of the weekly on Thursday, after a show-cause letter from the ministry last week that did not specify the exact article that was found offensive.

The Heat in its Nov 23 - 29 edition carried a front-page story on Prime Minister Najib Razak and his wife Rosmah Mansor's overseas trips titled 'All eyes on big-spending PM Najib'.

However the ministry has denied reports that the suspension is related to the said article.

Geramm urged the public as well as politicians from both sides of the divide to continue to voice their objections to the Home Ministry to pressure it to withdraw the suspension and to issue an "open apology to The Heat and all media practitioners and media users on violations of media freedom".