Malaysian minister asks officials not to ‘act against’ South China Morning Post reporter

Communications and multimedia minister Saifuddin Abdullah said he would ‘defend’ the journalist’s right to report on the arrest of migrant workers

Police have told Tashny Sukumaran to report to their headquarters in Kuala Lumpur for questioning on Wednesday

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Malaysia’s communications and multimedia minister Saifuddin Abdullah has said he is looking into the law under which journalist Tashny Sukumaran will be questioned over her reporting. Photo: AP

Published: 12:12am, 4 May 2020Updated: 12:18am, 4 May 2020

A Malaysian minister on Sunday said he would ask authorities not to “act against” a South China Morning Post reporter who along with other members of the country’s press corps, reported on the arrests of hundreds of migrant workers last week.

Tashny Sukumaran, who is based in Kuala Lumpur, said she was told a police report had been made against her and she was being investigated under Malaysia’s Penal Code and Communications Act.

The article, published on Friday, detailed how Malaysia’s civil defence, police and immigration forces raided three buildings in the nation’s capital in an operation starting on Thursday evening to test for Covid-19, and arrested hundreds of undocumented foreign workers. Photos showing people lined up outside the buildings were supplied by a source.

Communications and multimedia minister Saifuddin Abdullah said in a tweet on Sunday that he was “looking into” the law under which Sukumaran will be questioned.

“I may not like ur piece but I will defend ur right to write it,” he wrote.

The raid on the apartment blocks, which offer low cost accommodation and are thought to house over 5,000 people, came just hours after Malaysia announced it would relax its lockdown restrictions and allow most businesses to reopen.

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