Three of the leading news portals in Malaysia will converge together in a first of its kind show of togetherness on Friday, at a forum called "Free the Media", which is organised by the Movement of Angry Media (Geramm).

Geramm is an informal group formed by media personnel following last week's indefinite suspension of news weekly The Heat by the Home Ministry.

Malaysiakini and Free Malaysia Today will have their representatives on the six-member panel at the forum to be held at the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, the Geramm secretariat said in a press statement today.

Malaysiakini 's editor-in-chief Steven Gan, Free Malaysia Today 's chief reporter G Vinod, Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ) head Masjaliza Hamzah, cartoonist Ronasina and Reporters Without Borders (RSF) representative Hata Wahari will be the speakers.

Former National Union of Journalists (NUJ) secretary-general V Anbalagan will also speak.

Zulkifli Sulong, who is also an editor with The Malaysian Insider , will be the moderator at the forum at which a wide range of topics pertaining to the government's curtailing of press freedom in the country will be discussed.

Forum free and open to the public

NONE Aside from the suspension of The Heat , the forum will also touch on the violence against media personnel during the Bersih 3.0 rally, the suspension of opposition newspapers and, generally, restrictions on the media under the Printing Presses and Publications Act (PPPA) 1984.

The forum, which is free and open to public, will take place from 8.30pm to 11pm.

Geramm was launched last Friday, a day after the suspension of The Heat .

The group, consisting mostly of young journalists, has started campaigning every day on Facebook and Twitter , since yesterday, and they will also be wearing red on Fridays.

"Red is also a symbol of heat and the rage of the people at the government," the group secretariat said when launching the movement last week.

The group is also planning a two-week campaign to collect signatures for a petition against the suspension of The Heat , which will be handed over to the Home Ministry.