KL authorities raid pro-opposition publisher<\/p>\n
KUALA LUMPUR (AP): Malaysian authorities raided the newsroom
\nof a pro-opposition publishing firm and confiscated hundreds of
\ncopies of a tabloid that the government has declared illegal, an
\neditor said on Monday.<\/p>\n
About 13 officials of the Home Affairs Ministry entered the
\nheadquarters of Pemuda Publications with a search warrant on
\nFriday and took 640 copies of the Malay-language Islah newspaper,
\nAhmad Lutfi Othman said.<\/p>\n
Ahmad Lutfi claimed that authorities were upset by the
\nnewspaper's coverage of an ongoing feud between the federal
\ngovernment and opposition leaders over payment of oil royalties
\nworth millions of dollars to an opposition-ruled state.<\/p>\n
Nazarul Mustafa, a senior enforcement official with the Home
\nAffairs Ministry, confirmed that the raid took place but declined
\nto elaborate.<\/p>\n
Another ministry spokesman, speaking on the condition of
\nanonymity, said Islah was illegal because Pemuda Publications did
\nnot obtain a permit to print it.<\/p>\n
At least 100,000 copies of Islah's first issue hit newsstands
\nthree weeks ago, Ahmad Lutfi said. He had planned to gauge the
\npublic's response to the 24-page publication before coming out
\nwith subsequent issues.<\/p>\n
The editor admitted that Islah, which means \"reform\" in
\nArabic, did not have a printing permit. He claimed this was not
\nnecessary for newspapers which had no regular publishing
\nschedule.<\/p>\n
The opposition accuses authorities of trying to curb press
\nfreedoms through the Printing Presses and Publications Act, which
\nrequires publishers to obtain annual permits from the government.<\/p>\n
Islah is Ahmad Lutfi's third publication to fall under the
\ngovernment ax recently. Authorities have banned his pro-reform
\nmonthly magazines, Detik and Al-Wasilah, for allegedly flouting
\ntechnical conditions in their printing contracts.<\/p>\n
The editor has also been charged for publishing another
\nnewspaper earlier this year without a printing permit. He faces
\nup to three years in prison and a fine if found guilty. The trial
\nstarts Nov. 22.<\/p>",
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