SUBANG JAYA: Media freedom is important in the "new Malaysia", says Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

The PKR de-facto leader said that one of the challenges for the new Pakatan Harapan Government was to ensure that there was media freedom in the country.

"The challenge for the new Government is to make sure that the media is free," said Anwar in a speech during the 64th birthday celebration of businessman and philantrophist Oms P. Thiagarajan at Grand Dorsett Hotel here on Saturday (June 2).

The media, he said, must be free to write about issues affecting the country so that Malaysians can understand the steps taken by the Government to resolve them.

He said that his time in prison has thought him the importance of freedom, as he said that the meaning of freedom was more apparent after it was taken away from an individual.

"The true meaning of freedom can only be understood when we have been denied freedom or incarcerated," he said.

He also urged Malaysians to give their support to the new Government while it tackles the issues affecting the country.

He recognised that Malaysians were looking for change with the recent election and urged them to have a "positive attitude" to the new administration.