Gedung Kartun returns with more bite
Aidila RazakPublished: Dec 9, 2009 10:37 AM | Updated: Dec 9, 2009 10:53 AM
Not intimidated by a Home Ministry raid in August, the team behind the controversial comic magazine, Gedung Kartun , has struck again.
Not intimidated by a Home Ministry raid in August, the team behind the controversial comic magazine, Gedung Kartun, has struck again.
The premises of Sepakat Efektif Sdn Bhd, the publisher of the popular bi-monthly magazine was raided after they were accused of not having a valid printing licence.
A total of 408 copies of the magazine and 18 printing plates were confiscated during the raid on Aug 25 for violating the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 .
The editor of the magazine Zulkiflee Anwar Ulhaque, better known as Zunar, denied they had operated without a valid licence and is now back after a brief hiatus.
Zulkiflee and his team of six talented cartoonists circumvented the rules by publishing the second edition of Gedung Kartun in book form under the title "Perak Darul Kartun".
In Malaysia, non-serial publications are only required to have an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and Zulkiflee said they are not out to provoke the Home Ministry.
"This is not our objective as the Home Ministry was only doing its job then when it came for us," he said. "This time around it's in book form and published once a month.”
"If the book faces objections, then it'll be clear that the ministry is concerned over content, and not whether we have a permit."
Cartoonists have a duty
Zulkiflee said they will continue to produce alternative content. "Cartoonists have a duty to not be silent or indifferent in times of crisis.
"We are currently facing a moral crisis with Malaysians losing faith in their leaders. If we remain indifferent, it means we are on the side of those who have acted unjustly."
The Home Ministry has thus far been mum about the permit to publish Gedung Kartun as a magazine, and other applications submitted for various publications by Zulkiflee.
"The procedures required for publication permits is outdated, as it is still the ministry's prerogative to allow us to print or not to print," he said.
The ministry is not compelled to provide a reason for rejecting an application, nor are they required to process applications within a certain timeframe.
Zulkiflee also urged the government to not hold printers accountable for the content of what they print, as it is not their job to vet or proof-read publications .
He admitted that several printers had declined to print Perak Darul Kartun as they did not want to risk getting into the authorities' bad books.
A sensation on Facebook
Several cartoonists who contributed to Gedung Kartun had also pulled out from the current project for the same reason.
10,000 copies of Perak Darul Kartun, with works from 14 cartoonists and six writers, went on sale on Monday, and is causing a sensation on social networking site, Facebook.
Academic Farish Noor is one of its contributors and showed off his skills in a 14-page contribution, entitled Istanaku (My Palace).
"(Farish) completed these drawings 10 years ago, and asked if we could include it when he heard that we were publishing (Perak Darul Kartun)," he said.
In keeping with its title, the book will be officially launched by ousted Perak MB Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin this Sunday at the Bukit Antarabangsa Service Centre.
The first 10 pages of the book is devoted to the Perak crisis, detailing a battle between pro-democracy (led by Memanda Nijar) and primitive group (led by Kapitan Nazak) to capture the fictional state of Darul Kartun.
It features recognisable characters like super hero Speaker Supersiva and three frogs with human heads, who brought 'ong' (luck) to the primitive group.
Sections from Gedung Kartun like Nostalgia '98 and Selangor Tanah Airku (Selangor My Homeland) also make a comeback.
The book also takes a swipe at the Home Ministry with a strip depicting a man applying for a permit to laugh. The 80-page book, printed in colour is sold for RM10.
Gedung Kartun's inaugural issue which had 68 pages and sold for RM4, was snapped in no time. The publishers had to print an additional 5,000 copies to the initial 10,000 to meet demand.
The issue broached the death of DAP political aide Teoh Beng Hock and the Port Klang Free Zone scandal and lampooned Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak on the cover, holding a Mongolian flag while crying 'Merdeka'.
The premises of Sepakat Efektif Sdn Bhd, the publisher of the popular bi-monthly magazine was raided after they were accused of not having a valid printing licence.
A total of 408 copies of the magazine and 18 printing plates were confiscated during the raid on Aug 25 for violating the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984 .
The editor of the magazine Zulkiflee Anwar Ulhaque, better known as Zunar, denied they had operated without a valid licence and is now back after a brief hiatus.Zulkiflee and his team of six talented cartoonists circumvented the rules by publishing the second edition of Gedung Kartun in book form under the title "Perak Darul Kartun".
In Malaysia, non-serial publications are only required to have an International Standard Book Number (ISBN) and Zulkiflee said they are not out to provoke the Home Ministry.
"This is not our objective as the Home Ministry was only doing its job then when it came for us," he said. "This time around it's in book form and published once a month.”
"If the book faces objections, then it'll be clear that the ministry is concerned over content, and not whether we have a permit."
Cartoonists have a duty
Zulkiflee said they will continue to produce alternative content. "Cartoonists have a duty to not be silent or indifferent in times of crisis.
"We are currently facing a moral crisis with Malaysians losing faith in their leaders. If we remain indifferent, it means we are on the side of those who have acted unjustly."
The Home Ministry has thus far been mum about the permit to publish Gedung Kartun as a magazine, and other applications submitted for various publications by Zulkiflee.
"The procedures required for publication permits is outdated, as it is still the ministry's prerogative to allow us to print or not to print," he said.
The ministry is not compelled to provide a reason for rejecting an application, nor are they required to process applications within a certain timeframe.
Zulkiflee also urged the government to not hold printers accountable for the content of what they print, as it is not their job to vet or proof-read publications .
He admitted that several printers had declined to print Perak Darul Kartun as they did not want to risk getting into the authorities' bad books.
A sensation on Facebook
Several cartoonists who contributed to Gedung Kartun had also pulled out from the current project for the same reason.
10,000 copies of Perak Darul Kartun, with works from 14 cartoonists and six writers, went on sale on Monday, and is causing a sensation on social networking site, Facebook.
Academic Farish Noor is one of its contributors and showed off his skills in a 14-page contribution, entitled Istanaku (My Palace).
"(Farish) completed these drawings 10 years ago, and asked if we could include it when he heard that we were publishing (Perak Darul Kartun)," he said.
In keeping with its title, the book will be officially launched by ousted Perak MB Mohammad Nizar Jamaluddin this Sunday at the Bukit Antarabangsa Service Centre.
The first 10 pages of the book is devoted to the Perak crisis, detailing a battle between pro-democracy (led by Memanda Nijar) and primitive group (led by Kapitan Nazak) to capture the fictional state of Darul Kartun.
It features recognisable characters like super hero Speaker Supersiva and three frogs with human heads, who brought 'ong' (luck) to the primitive group.
Sections from Gedung Kartun like Nostalgia '98 and Selangor Tanah Airku (Selangor My Homeland) also make a comeback.
The book also takes a swipe at the Home Ministry with a strip depicting a man applying for a permit to laugh. The 80-page book, printed in colour is sold for RM10.Gedung Kartun's inaugural issue which had 68 pages and sold for RM4, was snapped in no time. The publishers had to print an additional 5,000 copies to the initial 10,000 to meet demand.
The issue broached the death of DAP political aide Teoh Beng Hock and the Port Klang Free Zone scandal and lampooned Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak on the cover, holding a Mongolian flag while crying 'Merdeka'.
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