PUTRAJAYA: The Media Council Bill will be tabled in Parliament in June, said Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil.
He said the bill, which was originally drafted in 2019 under the former Pakatan Harapan-led administration, was being finalised by the Attorney-General's Chambers.
"If there are no issues and should the draft be approved (by the Cabinet), it will be brought to Parliament during the sitting in June," he said at a press conference today.
Yesterday, Fahmi launched the Malaysian Code of Ethics for Journalists, a guideline for media agencies and practitioners.
The code will be used as a reference point by the Information Department for the management of media passes for practitioners.
However, the initiative has come under criticism from several quarters who said it was not the government's place to decide on journalism ethics.
Fahmi today said the ethics code launched yesterday was a refined and updated version of a code of ethics developed by the Malaysian Press Institute in 1989.
He said the Media Council can decide on developing its code of ethics.
On whether PAS organ Harakah would be able to obtain media passes, Fahmi said it was up to the Information Department Director-General to decide on the matter.
In November last year, PAS information chief Ahmad Fadhli Shaari, who is also Pasir Mas MP, claimed Harakah received a letter from the Information Department requesting that its reporters return their official media passes.
He added that without the official media passes, Harakah journalists will be unable to enter government premises such as Parliament to report on events there.