PETALING JAYA: Online news portal, Malaysiakini’s office in Bangsar Utama, Kuala Lumpur was found splashed with red paint earlier this morning.
A dead duck, placed in a cardboard box, was also placed outside its office’s main door. A picture of Seputeh MP Teresa Kok was attached to the box.
The paint was splashed on the walls, Malaysiakini’s signboard and on a motorcycle parked near the vicinity.
According to Malaysiakini’s graphic editor Azlan Zamhari, the paint was still wet when he arrived at the office at about 6am today.
He also suspected that the paint may have been thrown at the office using plastic bags.
The incident is speculated to be linked to Kok’s political satire video titled ‘Onederful Malaysia CNY 2014’, which lampooned a number of top personalities in Malaysia.
Malaysiakini had covered extensively on the video, as well a protest in Kuala Lumpur organised by several Muslim NGO’s which offered a RM1,200 reward to anybody willing to slap Kok.
Last week, Kok’s office was also splashed with red paint, with a dead chicken placed at the staircase leading to her office.
In an immediate response, Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan said that the website management will be making a police report on the incident.
“There is a CCTV (closed-circuit television) installed at the busy intersection outside the office. I hope it’s working and we shall be asking the police to check the footage so that we can nail the culprits.”
Gan added that Malaysiakini will not be cowed by such cowardly attacks.
“This is the work of agent provocateurs,” said Malaysiakini chief executive officer Premesh Chandran.
“It’s a vile attempt to silence those speaking up, and at the same time normalise the idea of violence. If nothing is done to stop such actions, if nobody is brought to book, we can expect things to get worse,” he said.
