PETALING JAYA: Media practitioners should not be subjected to rough treatment when carrying out duties, says Communications Minister Datuk Fahmi Fadzil.
In response to the alleged rough treatment of media practitioners at the Pakatan Harapan convention on Sunday, he said journalists must be given full space to carry out their duties at any event.
“I deeply regret the incident. I have instructed the (convention) secretariat to review the complaints as well as those who may have been involved, so that appropriate action can be taken.
“In my view, journalists should be given full space and access at any event.
“However, I also understand that in certain situations, particularly where physical space is limited and there is movement involving individuals being interviewed, such situations can arise.”
The Johor Media Club issued a statement that a police report had been lodged over alleged aggressive conduct by a political party’s security squad against media members.
On another matter, Fahmi said there is no issue in implementing an age verification system using official government documents to restrict social media access for those under 16.
He said in terms of data protection and personal data security, the Personal Data Protection Act already applies to the handling of personal data.
“We see no contradiction in implementing age verification using official government documents, as other sectors in the country are already using it.”
It was previously reported that the government plans to impose restrictions on access to social media accounts for children under 16 as part of efforts to strengthen online protection.
This includes targeting all social media platforms to implement digital user identity verification (eKYC) by the end of the second quarter of 2026 to enforce the minimum age requirement for account registration.
