KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysian online media said Tuesday they had been barred from covering the ruling party's annual conference, a day after the government suspended two newspapers for three months.

The opposition has said it fears a media crackdown is under way, after action was taken against the two newspapers for "inciting hatred" against the government.

An official from United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) confirmed the party had rejected several applications from online media for access to the five-day talks, which begin Tuesday, but did not give an exact number.

Five news websites told AFP that they had been denied access passes, including prominent news portals Malaysiakini and Malaysian Insider.

UMNO working secretary Husainay Hashim said the decision was made was because their coverage of previous UMNO meetings was "not friendly".

"From our experience with Malaysiakini for instance, they are not too friendly with us, they are not helping us. You have to report based on facts, not distorting the story," he told AFP.

"We just don't give them the passes, it is not a ban. They can get information from elsewhere," he added.

Malaysiakini editor-in-chief Steven Gan criticised the decision, saying it showed a lack of respect for press freedom and that it could signal a wider clampdown when incoming premier Najib Razak takes over later this month.

"Our job is to report news as professional journalists, the issue of being friendly with a certain party does not come into the picture," he said.

"(The ban) will be read as a sign that it is the new order under Najib and if you put together some of the developments over the past few weeks, there is fear there could be further repression when he takes over as PM," Gan said.

Malaysia's mainstream media are largely government-linked, and the opposition relies on its own press, as well as Internet news sites and blogs, to convey its message to the public.