DAP leader Lim Kit Siang today objected to the Information Ministry's attempt to 'distort' his criticism against a controversial Barisan Nasional propaganda video aired on prime-time television.

Lim said his opposition to the controversial 90-second clip - which included a snippet from Cable News Network - should not be misconstrued as defending the Taliban execution of an Afghan woman as depicted in the footage.

Lim does not object to video's content, but disapproves of Barisan National using it to further its own political agenda.

It is for PAS or Keadilan to object to the contents of the footage, as they are the ones targeted, said Lim in a statement.

Lim reiterated his position that the clip "camouflaging" as a prime-time news item violated all rules of ethics in broadcasting.

Footage 'repeated', not 'doctored'

The opposition leader was speaking in response to Information Ministry parliamentary secretary Zainuddin Mydin's comments yesterday that Lim should be silent on the issue as the government was defending democracy against religious extremists.

"We do not expect him to support us but he should keep quiet," Zainuddin was quoted as saying in The Star .

Zainuddin also conceded that the footage had been 'repeated' and not 'doctored' as claimed by Lim.

Lim however said that "doctoring means any tampering, including repeating a particular segment without proper explanation or clarification".

Lim added the act was an effort to portray PAS and Keadilan as rooting for a Taliban Malaysia. This was done for the purpose of the Indera Kayangan by-election on Jan 19, he said.

The controversial clip aired during news-breaks on RTM 1, RTM 2 and TV3 conveys the message that PAS infringed on women's rights, suggesting it may behave like the repressive Taliban should it come to power.

The scene in contention showed an Afghan woman being shot three times instead of once as in the original CNN footage.