Malaysia Minister, Media To Attend Indonesian Press Day

Kuala Lumpur, Feb 4 (Antara) - Malaysian Minister of Communication and Multimedia Dato` Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek and Malaysian media representatives will attend the commemoration of the National Press Day in the Indonesian Province of Bengkulu on February 9. "We will attend the National Press Day in Bengkulu on February 9 and have a banquet with several national newsmen," Shabery said here on Monday night. The media representatives will include editors-in-chief from a number of press publications and reporters who will cover the event. Shabery is scheduled to arrive in Bengkulu on February 8 and return home on February 10. The participation of Malaysian media representatives in the event shows the close relations between the mass media of the two countries. "I hope that we will have news channels such as Al Jazeera, which is acceptable to the Arab community," he said. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to attend the commemoration of the National Press Day in Bengkulu on February 9. While in the province, the President will inaugurate an ASEAN journalism education and training center in Palembang, South Sumatra Province. Chairman of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) Margiono said late last month that 75 journalists from the ASEAN member countries will attend the inauguration of the training center. Permanent Secretary of the Confederation of ASEAN Journalists (CAJ) Akhmad Kusaeni noted that a workshop for ASEAN journalists will be held in Palembang, from February 10 to 12, following the inauguration of the training center. The three-day workshop will have the theme, "Bringing the ASEAN closer to the hearts and minds of the people." "The launch of the ASEAN journalism education and training center in Palembang had been recommended during the General Assembly of the Confederation of ASEAN Journalists in Manila, which was organized last year from November 21 to 23," Kusaeni said in late January.