An unspecified number of Harakah and Suara Keadilan , the newsletters of PAS and PKR respectively, were alleged to have been confiscated in various places in the country.

harakah confiscated 100209 Malaysiakini was informed by Harakah chief editor Lufti Othman that the latest edition of the newspaper, which carried reports on the political turmoil in Perak, had been confiscated in Perak, Selangor and other places.

He also claimed that the editorial team had been pressured by the authorities prior to the publication of the latest issue, and that vendors had been ordered to stop selling the newsletters.

Although he did not specify what those threats were, it is believed that they concerned the headlines and reports of the transfer of leadership in Perak.

He also said that Harakah will contact vendors in other states to investigate whether similar operations have been carried out.

“The confiscations were totally unexpected as no notice had been given,” added Lufti.

Meanwhile, distribution manager Suhaimi Embong stated that Harakah will provide legal service to vendors and compensation for confiscations.

“We do not know for sure who is responsible for the confiscations, but we will look into the letters that have been issued to us. We will also compile statistics on the confiscations and wait for official reports from the relevant ministry,” said Suhaimi.

'An attempt to suppress our voice'

Last Friday’s edition of Harakah carried front page reports denouncing the decision of the Election Commission that there will be no by-elections in Changkat Jering and Behrang.

tian chua suara keadilan permit kdn 220408 newspaper In a related development, PKR information chief Tian Chua alleged that the confiscation of Suara Keadilan has been reported in Johor, Melaka and other places.

He also suspects that the confiscations were linked to Suara Keadilan reports of Najib's unfulfilled pledge to disburse RM4.18 million to 26 mosques and 42 suraus during the Permatang Pauh by-election.

"The confiscations have been occurring sporadically since the Kuala Terengganu by-election was held on Jan 17.

“In addition to confiscating the newsletters, officers from the Home Ministry have also intimidated and discouraged vendors from displaying and selling the newspaper. This, clearly, is an attempt to suppress our voice."

Tian Chua added that he would conduct further investigation on the confiscations as well as seek a meeting with Home Minister Syed Hamid Albar to discuss the issue.

It is not the first time that Suara Keadilan has run into problems with the Home Ministry.

The newspaper, which has a current circulation of 100,000 copies, failed to apply for a printing permit in 2005, leaving it vulnerable to confiscation by the authorities, until it finally received a printing permit on April 22 2008.

Harakah , on the other hand, received approval by the Home Ministry to publish twice a month last June. Prior to that, it had been allowed to publish only once a month since 2000.