100 employees quit 'Gatra' to establish a new weekly<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): One hundred employees, among them reporters, of
\nthe Gatra weekly magazine have resigned, citing management
\nintervention in editorial policies, editors said Wednesday.<\/p>\n
The exodus followed last month's dismissal of the magazine's
\ndirectors and chief editors by the publisher, PT Era Media
\nInformasi, which is controlled by tycoon Mohammad (Bob) Hasan.<\/p>\n
\"Working conditions at Gatra are no longer conducive to
\ncreativity and press freedom,\" managing editor Agus Basri said.<\/p>\n
He had told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday that he and his
\ncolleagues were ready to start a new publication.<\/p>\n
\"We have all the infrastructure and management to run a new
\nmagazine,\" he had said, saying more of the weekly's 200 employees
\nmight join them.<\/p>\n
He said that they were also ready with names for the new
\nmagazine, citing TEGAR (an acronym for Tempo Gatra Reformasi),
\nGATRA Reformasi, or GAMMA.<\/p>\n
Agus said Wednesday the new magazine may publish next month.<\/p>\n
The editors said one of their reasons was last month's
\ndismissal of the chief editor -- Herry Komar -- and directors
\nLukman Setiawan, Haryoko Trisnadi and Mahtum Mastoem.<\/p>\n
Herry had said the dismissal was announced in the
\nshareholders' meeting of Nov. 20 through Budiono Kartohadiprodjo,
\nthe publisher's director. Bob Hasan has 55 percent of shares in
\nthe weekly, according to the management.<\/p>\n
Gatra was established in October 1994 immediately after the
\ngovernment revoked the publishing license of Tempo in June 1994
\nover its editorial content. Some of the journalists from the then
\ndefunct Tempo joined Gatra, while others were spread across
\nseveral publications.<\/p>\n
Tempo resumed publication in October this year.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile the agency quoted Budiono as saying he was doubtful
\nthat 100 employees had left the magazine.<\/p>\n
\"The number still has to be checked; maybe some signed up for
\na cooperative meeting and the signatures could have been
\nmanipulated,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Chief editor and general manager Widi Yarmanto denied charges
\nof management intervention in editorial policy, saying Hasan had
\nonly visited the office three times in four years, and \"had never
\ncalled to request that a certain item be published or not.\"<\/p>\n
Widi said, \"He had only phoned when there was a published item
\nabout himself, and had felt Gatra had not requested confirmation
\nfrom him.\"<\/p>\n
Editor Bersihar Lubis had said they disagreed with Hasan, who
\nhad \"reprimanded\" the magazine's executives for certain stories.<\/p>\n
Among others the weekly reported on Hasan's loan scam in his
\nBank Umum Nasional in a September edition.<\/p>\n
Director Budiono said he respected the employees' decision to
\nquit. \"What's important is that Gatra continues to do its job
\nwell,\" he said.<\/p>\n
In response to complaints among employees that Hasan refused
\nto sell his shares, Budiono was quoted by the agency as saying
\nthis was not true.<\/p>\n
\"The shares can be sold as long as they fall in the hands of
\nemployees, not third parties.\" (imn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/100-employees-quit-gatra-to-establish-a-new-weekly-1447893297",
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