Axed journalists seek Suhakams help
The group of seven from The Sun daily today met with Suhakam commissioners Anuar Zainal Abidin and Mehrun Siraj to call for a review of existing employment contracts and collective agreements that are inconsistent with human rights provisions.
The journalists were part of the first batch of about 40 staff of The Sun who were sacked by the management last month. The management had initiated another round of retrenchment with an additional 256 staff getting the boot last Thursday.
Since the retrenchment on Jan 11, we feel our rights have been violated by the Sun Media Corporation, said the groups spokesperson V Gayathry.
The management has jeopardised our livelihood, our right to freedom of expression, our trade rights as well as our human rights.
Badly treated
According to Gayathry, the manner in which the company conducted the retrenchment exercise was unfair.
A journalist from the Klang bureau who was on maternity leave was sacked without notice. She should not have been treated in such a manner, Gayathry said.
According to the company, the mass sacking was part of its measures to reduce operation costs, which currently records a monthly loss of about RM2 million.
The Suns woes began last Christmas when it published an exclusive alleging a plot to kill Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his deputy, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.
The journalist and his photographer responsible for the story were later suspended after a full front-page apology was tendered to both Mahathir and Abdullah. The photographer has since been retrenched while the journalist was reinstated.
Gayathry also called on Suhakam to identify the responsibility of the private sector in upholding, protecting and defending human rights insofar as terms and conditions of employment are concerned and for government agencies to enforce employment laws and sanction employers who breach the provisions.
Pickets
According to another retrenched journalist, Bob Teoh, the sacking could also have been due to a picket which the journalists organised in support of their two colleagues following their suspension.
We had people from the management taking photographs of us picketing and later stacks of these photographs were used to identify those involved in the picket.
The company should not cite reasons of financial difficulties in its retrenchment letters to us, Teoh said.
The Sun journalists have organised a series of pickets and candle-light vigils to protest against the suspension of their two colleagues as well as not having received their promised bonuses.
Gayathry also made the call that the government repeals the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984, in particular the annual licensing requirement, to prevent misuses and abuse of powers over the media.
We also recommend that the federal government repeal any laws that now deny citizens the right of freedom of expression, to associate and assemble, she added.
Open inquiry
Commissioner Anuar later told the journalists that he would seriously consider the calls made by them.
We cannot give any assurances but we will look at this matter thoroughly. We do see some merit in your arguments, Anuar said.
He added that he would also consider initiating an open inquiry but it would depend on the schedule of the commissioners.
More than a week after the Jan 11 retrenchment exercise, fledgling media company Nexnews announced its intention to purchase a major stake in the troubled Sun.
It is believed that plans are afoot for the national daily to relaunch itself as a free Klang Valley-based paper.
This new suburban newspaper is expected to be similar to The Leader, an English-language weekly distributed for free by Utusan Melayu in the Klang Valley in the mid-1990s. However, the venture failed after a few years.
Nevertheless, newly launched Singapores Today, which followed the same business model, have shown to be successful.
