One of the cornerstones of an accountable, transparent democracy is a free, fair and independent media. This helps to build confidence in the Government and in its processes. We, the undersigned, would therefore insist that the Government stop interfering in newsrooms and that it repeal the licensing provisions in the Printing Presses and Publications Act 1984. We make this appeal in the light of the recent ‘show-cause’ letter sent to China Press. In this instance, as reported in The Straits Times, the public seem to remain sceptical over Commission, Opposition and police reports that the woman in the ‘nude ear-squats’ case was Malaysian rather than a Chinese national. The only way to rectify this is to re-build public confidence in the media, which is in turn only possible if the press are seen to be free, fair and independent. Thank you, The Undersigned.