Yusof Ghani
2:52pm Wed Jan 29th, 2003

The Prime Minister's Office yesterday requested a copy of the letter published by malaysiakini which had led Umno Youth to lodge a police report claiming its content was seditious.

Copies of the letter - ‘Similarities between ‘new Americans and bumiputera' - written by Petrof o­n Jan 9 and two other preceding o­nes - ‘No apologies for the Malaysian way' (Jan 7) by Delimma and ‘Why PM why?' (Jan 3) by Manjit Bhatia were subsequently faxed to the premier's office.

When contacted, an official from the department said today that Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad received two protest letters from international media organisations which criticised the police raid o­n malaysiakini.

"I am not very sure the organisations that have sent their protest, but they represent international media organisations," said the official who declined to be named.

Among the international media organisations which have sent protest letters after the police raid were Bangkok-based Southeast Asian Press Alliance, London-based Commonwealth Journalists Association, New York-based Committee to Protect Journalist, Paris-based Reporters Sans Frontieres and Brussels-based International Federation of Journalists.

"The letters (faxed by malaysiakini) are for the prime minister's consumption," he added.

Mahathir overseas

Mahathir was abroad when the police seized 15 CPUs and four servers from malaysiakini's office in Bangsar Utama, Kuala Lumpur o­n Jan 20.

The hardware, 15 of which were returned in stages over the next few days, were seized when the o­nline daily's editor-in-chief Steven Gan refused to disclose the identity of the letter writer o­n the ground of professional ethics.

The next day, the police also recorded a statement from Gan while four other editorial staff also had their statements recorded later.

Investigating officer ASP Alzafny Ahmad from the Dang Wangi district police headquarters said that malaysiakini chief executive officer Premesh Chandran will also be called in for questioning in the next few days.

Mahathir, who attended the World Economic Summit in Switzerland, after visiting Lebanon and Egypt, returned to Kuala Lumpur o­n Sunday.