Umno's official website [#1] Umno-Online [/#] has commended the Deputy Prime Minister for allowing malaysiakini reporters to attend an official function despite the Home Ministry's ban on the online newspaper.

An article entitled "Pak Lah's action in allowing malaysiakini to cover news commended" said that Abdullah Ahmad Badawi has taken the right step when he allowed the website reporters to cover the "CEO of the Year Award 2000" on Monday.

"This shows that Pak Lah is caring and sensitive as the deputy prime minister who appreciates democracy and upholds the principles of press freedom practised in Malaysia all this while," it said.

"Deputy Home Minister Chor Chee Heung's statement to ban malaysiakini from attending government functions will not help solve any problems. Instead, it will distance the government's views from readers of the website," the article added.

On Sunday, Chor was reported as saying that the government will ban malaysiakini journalists from attending official functions because it did not have the official press tag and was "very critical of the government".

He was responding to reporters' query regarding an allegation in the latest edition of Far Eastern Economic Review that currency speculator George Soros is funding Malaysiakini.com through the infamous financier's charity organisation, Open Society Institute.

Malaysiakini.com has since refuted the claim and has ignored Chor's announced ban by sending two journalists to cover the Malaysian CEO award presentation held at a Kuala Lumpur hotel.

After a moment of uncertainty, the reporters were allowed into the function venue at the eleventh hour. However, Abdullah did not meet up with the press when the function ended, as was his custom.

Chor when contacted by malaysiakini yesterday said that the ban applied to all press personnel who did not have official press tags ([#2] Ban on all press members without passes: Chor [/#], Feb 6).

Bullets to the enemy

The Umno-Online article also said that by banning malaysiakini from reporting official functions meant that the newspaper was also prevented from reporting what was done by the government.

"The government will lose opportunities for publicity not only locally but internationally as well," it said.

"(By doing this) We are actually giving more bullets to the enemy," the article added.

It further urged the government to accord the online newspaper rights and opportunities in line with the principle of press freedom as long as it does not threaten national security.

"Criticism against the government must be answered to and not to be evaded," the article said.

The article also went on to say that whether the newspaper is funded by Soros or western agents, it is no reason to ban them.

"If laws have been violated, court action should be taken against them. If there has been inaccurate reporting, corrections should be made," the article said, adding that malaysiakini 's objectivity is a separate issue altogether.

"The action to ban malaysiakini will not benefit the government and Umno in the long run. It will instead benefit the opposition who is presently hiding behind malaysiakini ," the article added.

It concluded that malaysiakini was not so popular until the government popularised it.

Laughing stock

Meanwhile, DAP chairman Lim Kit Siang said in a press statement today that the Home Ministry's ban will make Malaysia a laughing stock in the IT world as it imperils the success of the "multi-billion ringgit Multimedia Super Corridor".

"The ban on online newspapers is tantamount to a violation of the MSC Bill of Guarantee of No Internet Censorship," said Lim.

He urged Abdullah to direct Chor to stop the nonsense of barring malaysiakini from covering government functions because it gives the impression that Barisan Nasional ministers are afraid of reporters asking hard questions.