Chipping away at press freedom<\/p>\n
Is the Indonesian government in favor of freedom of the press?
\nIs it going to uphold it in future? I ask because state-owned
\ntelevision network TVRI recently seems to be doing its utmost to
\ncreate a public perception that \"freedom of the press is a bad
\nthing\".<\/p>\n
They have treated us to talk shows where the speakers have had
\none thing in common -- their antipress freedom views. They have
\ntold us that press freedom is not culturally appropriate for this
\ncountry, that it incites violence, that the people are not ready
\nfor it, etc., the standard arguments used by regimes the world
\nover for cracking down on the press. Incredibly, some speakers
\nhave even tried to pin responsibility for recent violence on the
\npress alone. Although they all have the right to express their
\nviews, the sheer uniformity of their condemnation of the press
\nseems more than just coincidence.<\/p>\n
This all comes at a time when TVRI itself seems to be losing
\nthe relative independence it has recently enjoyed (one example of
\nmany was the recent unbalanced talk show in which Mrs. Murdaya
\nactually blamed the students for getting shot). Even more
\nworryingly, SCTV, normally a champion of objective reporting,
\nseems to be turning gradually into a government mouthpiece. This
\nwas particularly apparent following Black Friday, where Liputan 6
\nconsistently reinforced the government's views of the treason
\ncharges, while practically ignoring the very real suffering of
\nthe victims of the Semanggi tragedy.<\/p>\n
So, where does the government stand? Does it want freedom of
\nspeech to thrive in the Indonesian press, or are its real views
\nbeing aired through TVRI? Indeed, is it already beginning to
\nerode press freedom, and using TVRI to ready the public for
\nfurther limitations in future?<\/p>\n
ANDREW TRIGG<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/chipping-away-at-press-freedom-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }