SEVERAL MEDIA ORGANISATIONS BARRED FROM COVERING STATE ASSEMBLY SITTING

ALOR SETAR (Malaysia), Nov 15 (Bernama) -- Several media organisations were
not allowed to cover the Kedah State Legislative Assembly sitting beginning
Sunday until Tuesday.

On Sunday, several journalists from the organisation that had been barred
from entering the Wisma Darulaman building to cover the official opening of the
State Assembly sitting by the Sultan of Kedah tried to enter the building to
cover the proceedings but were stopped by security guards at the entrance.

The state government only allowed journalists from Bernama as well as The
Star, Sinar Harian, Harakah, Sin Chew Daily, China Press, Kwong Hwa Jit Poh,
Guan Ming Daily, Oriental Daily, Nan Yang Siang Pau, Makkal Osai and Malaysian
Nanban to cover the three-day sitting.

The letter informing the list of the media allowed to cover the sitting, signed by the Press Secretary to the Chief Minister, Muhamad Helmi Mohamed Khalid, was sent to all the media organisations in the country on Thursday following what was claimed as "manipulation by the media against the Kedah state government lately".

Apart from the mainstream media, journalists from Malaysiakini were also not allowed to enter the building although the organisation was not in the list of the media barred from making coverage.

Kedah is a state of Malaysia, located in the northwestern part of Peninsular Malaysia.