KUALA LUMPUR, April 5 — A Malaysian minister proposed today that Asean establish an Asean News Agency to strengthen cooperation in the region.
Communications and Multimedia Minister Datuk Seri Salleh Said Keruak said a news agency in the region could mirror Malaysian state news outfit Bernama.
“All too often, almost every Asean member faces cross-border issues relating to security and national sovereignty.
“Such issues should be reported in a cordial and transparent manner so that it does not further complicate conflicts, both regional and global,” he said in his opening speech of the Asean Editors Summit here, the first to be held.
The minister also urged news outlets in South-east Asia to produce “greater critical reporting” to ensure the public is informed about regional policies.
“To this end, the media in South-east Asia and more importantly, editors like yourselves, have a crucial role to play in increasing the awareness of the more than 650 million people to Asean’s initiatives.
“Greater critical reporting will be vital to ensure that the public is fully informed about the Asean Community and the impact it has on [the] lives of the peoples in Asean,” said Salleh.
Salleh added that the idea of an Asean News Agency was possible considering that the 10 member-state group was already working on the “Asean Community”.
The Asean Community has been described as an initiative to “pull together in one direction to achieve its goals and aspirations”, although it is not clear what the goals are.
