E Contrario

At the final days of Abdullah’s premiership, his government is probably trying to do some good to correct the wrongs of Mahathir’s era. Yesterday (24 June) we got the news that the publication permit of Harakah was restored to its original twice a week.

It is definite a good news. Harakah is more than a mouthpiece of PAS, it had been an important instrument of Reformasi struggle. As the mainstream media were under the firm grip of the ruling parties, Harakah was the main channel of information dissemination. At the outbreak of Reformasi, Harakah’s sale shot up, surplussing the circulation of Utusan, Berita Harian and others.

Realizing this, Mahathir’s regime took action to restrict the circulation. Besides persecuting the printer and publisher of Harakah (1999), the government also imposed a new restriction on the frequency of Harakah. Previously, Harakah published twice a week. In March 2000, Harakah publishing license was replaced with twice a month.

Zunar, Hisham, Siva, and several activists organized a demonstration in Masjid Negara. For that, we were arrested and charged.

Ironically the trial is still going on. Now the Government implicitly agreed that the restriction was wrong in the first place.

It would be funny if we might be convicted for defending Harakah, but the restriction on Harakah has been lifted.

I hope the Government will be consistent in adhering to its openness. Suara Keadilan which had been denied a permit until earlier this year, would also seek permission to publish twice a week.