The Johor Media Club (KMJ) has expressed dissatisfaction with the treatment of media practitioners, specifically two female reporters who were allegedly subjected to unwanted touching and pinching by bodyguards of a minister while covering the Pulai parliamentary by-election in Johor Baru.
Mohamad Fauzi Ishak, the president of KMJ, revealed that these incidents occurred during two ceramah events held in Taman Anggerik and Taman Dahlia on September 5.
The KMJ president stated, “Some of the minister’s bodyguards attempted to hinder media personnel from carrying out their duties.
“One of them allegedly touched a female reporter’s hand multiple times while she was recording the press conference using her smartphone.
“During another ceramah, one of his bodyguards repeatedly pinched the lower back of another female reporter while she was in a press conference with the minister.
“The voice recording of the press conference captured the reporter expressing her refusal as she said ‘jangan sentuh saya’ which translates to ‘do not touch me’.”
He furthermore revealed, “In that same event, one of the bodyguards forcefully pushed away a photographer’s camera.”
Mohamad Fauzi, who also serves as the president of Gabungan Kelab Media Malaysia, expressed concerns regarding the safety of media personnel in the line of duty.
“Touching or pinching female reporters causes discomfort and poses a threat to their safety, and it can even be construed as an act of sexual harassment,” he emphasized.
Mohamad Fauzi explained that KMJ considers these incidents, which should never have occurred in the first place, as a serious matter and hopes that they will not be repeated in the future.
He asserted, “The media should be granted the space and opportunity to perform their responsibilities of disseminating information to the public without fear for their personal safety.”
The KMJ is an organization consisting of over 140 media members in Johor.
Credit: The Star : News Feed
