The Home Ministry has deferred plans to table proposed amendments to the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 (PPPA) pending consultations with all stakeholders.

This is because the government wanted to prioritise the tabling of amendments to the Communications and Multimedia Act 1998 (CMA), which also impacts journalists and the media industry, said Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

“We are not going ahead with any proposed amendments (to PPPA), not until all stakeholders have been consulted.

“And as of today that has not been accomplished yet,” Scoop quoted Saifuddin as saying during a meeting with National Press Club (NPC) representatives at his office in Putrajaya last week.

“(The CMA amendments) will take precedence for now,” Saifuddin said.

Since the meeting with Saifuddin (above), Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil yesterday tabled the CMA (Amendment) Bill 2024 which covers a large swath of issues such as hate speech, scams and unsolicited messages.

According to the Scoop report, NPC president Ahirudin Attan, who is also Big Boom Media group executive director, and legal counsel Jahaberdeen Mohamed Yunos spent an hour with Saifuddin to discuss matters affecting journalists and the NPC.

Media objection

On Nov 16, media rights groups urged the Home Ministry to clarify proposed amendments to the PPPA, which included expanding the definition of publication to include digital content, and reinstatement of licence renewals for print publications.

In a joint statement, the National Union of Journalists Malaysia (NUJM), Centre for Independent Journalism (CIJ), and Gerakan Media Merdeka (Geramm) condemned the move and labelled it another form of restricting press freedom.

They also emphasised the need for “meaningful dialogue” with stakeholders.

The proposed expansion of definitions and penalties under the PPPA, as well as mixed reactions from stakeholders, was recorded in a Home Ministry report based on a public consultation conducted between April 1 and April 16.

It was reported at the time that editors representing Bernama, RTM, Makkal Osai, New Straits Times and Sinar Harian objected to the proposal, suggesting that the government instead move forward in setting up the Media Council as an independent regulator.

Last month, the Home Ministry also briefed members of two Parliamentary Special Select Committees on the proposed amendments.

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