The Sun has yet again raised the ire of the powers-that-be for running a report concerning the barring of a meeting, which sought to campaign for the building of a Chinese school in Subang Jaya, Selangor.

The besieged newspaper ran a Bernama report on page 10 today under the headline 'Police stop illegal gathering by school association'.

It quoted Dang Wangi district police chief Mohd Bakri Zinin as saying that the gathering had to be stopped as it did not have a police permit.

Yesterday, some 20 police personnel blocked the entrance to the Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall building just before the meeting was about to commence.

The United Chinese School Committees' Association, or Dong Zong, had planned for a meeting to oppose the government's move to build a vision school in Subang Jaya, when a promised Chinese school has yet to be built.

About 300 representatives from various Chinese associations and organisations were barred from entering the venue.

After negotiations with the police that lasted for two hours, the organising party decided to postpone the meeting.

All mainstream newspapers today, with the exception of The Sun, did not carry news on the event.

Miscommunication

Sources say that The Sun editors were informed by the authorities not to run the story last night. However, a miscommunication led the late-night editor to insert the story into today's edition.

According to sources, the already-sapped editors had an earful from various parties for the oversight this morning.

It is learnt that Deputy Home Minister Chor Chee Heung called one of the editors today warning that the daily's annual licence could be suspended for the mistake.

Sources spoken to expressed surprise over the harsh reprimand as the paper had merely run a Bernama report which appeared on the national news agency's website late last night.

Chor when met in Indera Kayangan, Perlis, this evening denied making any telephone calls to The Sun editors.

However, the deputy minister said he had made a call to the daily's owner Vincent Tan "recently" but could not remember the details of the conversation.

The Sun had earlier landed itself in controversy following a Christmas Day front-page report of a plot to kill Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his deputy, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

This irked Mahathir and the daily published a front-page apology on Dec 27. Several editorial staffs were also suspended, prompting journalists and others to stage pickets calling for their reinstatement.

This resulted in the shock sackings of 43 staff last week, which according to the company was a cost-cutting exercise.