Grabbed at the creation - my years at the 'Post'<\/p>\n
Sabam Siagian, Director, PT Bina Media Tenggara, Jakarta<\/p>\n
It must have been either in late 1982 or early 1983 that Jusuf
\nWanandi, one of the founders of the Centre for Strategic and
\nInternational Studies (CSIS), started talking about the need to
\npublish an English-language newspaper in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
I was used to Jusuf's exuberance in venting his bubbling ideas
\nthat could range from the Middle East situation, disarmament
\nissues, regional issues of Southeast Asia to problems of
\nIndonesia's economic development.<\/p>\n
As he raised the idea of a new English-language newspaper and
\nstarted explaining why Indonesia needed such a quality
\npublication in order to inform about the dynamics of its domestic
\nsituation to neighboring countries where English was predominant,
\nhe threw some inquisitive glances in my direction.<\/p>\n
I had the uneasy feeling that he wanted me to get involved in
\nwhat I then considered to be a dubious experiment. There were
\nalready two English-language newspapers --the Indonesia Times and
\nthe Indonesian Observer-- and obviously the market was limited.<\/p>\n
However, Jusuf explained to me that a number of already
\nestablished media publishing firms would take part. These were
\nKompas\/Gramedia, Tempo newsweekly\/PT Graffiti Pers and PT Nawala
\nNusantara Bangun, which at that time was related to the Suara
\nKarya newspaper.<\/p>\n
He also informed me that the government, through information
\nminister Ali Moertopo, who was closely connected to CSIS, had
\nalready given its approval. Apparently it was also the
\ngovernment's opinion that Indonesia needed a quality media outlet
\nin the English language as a vehicle of information for the
\nneighboring countries that at one time were either part of the
\nBritish Commonwealth or previously administered by the United
\nStates.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, on the other hand, which was formerly the
\nNetherlands East Indies, was a colony of the Kingdom of the
\nNetherlands, and the Dutch language used to be the official
\nmedium of communication. Until the late 1950s there were still
\nschools using Dutch in the major cities of Indonesia. I
\nattended a Dutch senior high school in Jakarta, so I learned
\nEnglish from Dutch teachers.<\/p>\n
Finally, one day Jusuf Wanandi asked me directly if I would
\naccept the post of chief editor of the English-language newspaper
\nthat was to be published. I gave an evasive answer and asked for
\ntime to consider his proposal. My position at that time with the
\nafternoon newspaper Sinar Harapan, which in 1961 was published by
\nPT Sinar Kasih, was rather peculiar, to say the least.<\/p>\n
When I returned from a stay of more than 10 years in the
\nUnited States in 1973, Sinar Harapan was going through a
\nreorganization process. The newspaper had been banned at the end
\nof 1972 for publishing the draft state budget, which was supposed
\nto be embargoed. I still have a copy of that particular edition
\nof Sinar Harapan with the draft budget printed in toto on the
\nfront page.<\/p>\n
Most probably, more seasoned editors would have handled the
\nstory differently, such as by quoting \"informed sources\" and
\nchanging some figures here and there. Given the limited leeway
\nthat was at that time open to the press, that is what I had done
\nfrom time to time when I got hold of some original government
\ndocuments.<\/p>\n
The government agreed in early 1973 to lift the publishing ban
\non the condition that the newspaper carry out a reorganization
\nsince it was prone to violating the government's rules. That was
\nactually the reason Sinar Harapan acquired the reputation of a
\ndaring newspaper, while other newspapers were considered more
\ntimid in their reporting.<\/p>\n
It was in the middle of that process of reorganizing that I
\nwas asked to be the newspaper's deputy chief editor. My late
\nfather, who was a shareholder in the company and realized that it
\nwas important that Sinar Harapan continue to be published given
\nits distinct background --strongly imbued with the social
\nconsciousness of the Christian Protestant community in Indonesia
\n-- persuaded me to work there, even if only for a few years.<\/p>\n
He knew that I had other plans, but as I was to find out,
\nbeing involved in the newspaper business is like sipping quality
\nwine: You never know when to stop. My father reminded me that
\nsince my student days at the University of Indonesia in the 1950s
\nI was already involved in the student press.<\/p>\n
So, Sinar Harapan appeared again, with a new editorial team,
\nand was searching for a new format. The new newspaper survived
\nthe tumultuous political events of January 1974, when a number of
\nmore established newspapers were closed down, and gradually found
\nits format.<\/p>\n
On the one hand there was the realistic awareness within the
\neditorial team that president Soeharto's government had by then
\nacquired a high level of confidence. The 1972 general election
\nyielded a landslide victory for the ruling party, Golkar. The
\ngovernment successfully weathered the political crisis of January
\n1974, which in essence was a muted power struggle between
\ncompeting generals in his entourage.<\/p>\n
And there was the dramatic rise world in oil prices, which
\nprovided the New Order with a comfortable financial cushion,
\nalthough Indonesia was only a modest net oil exporter. On the
\nother hand, there were indications of social dissatisfaction that
\nneeded to be aired, albeit cautiously.<\/p>\n
Within these parameters, Sinar Kasih daily gradually moved
\nforward to become one of the country's more popular afternoon
\nnewspapers. I soon found out, however, that sometimes relative
\nsuccess can cause new internal problems in the newspaper
\nbusiness.<\/p>\n
At the suggestion of the late Soedjatmoko, I accepted a
\nNiemann Foundation fellowship for media journalists at Harvard
\nUniversity in Cambridge, Massachusetts, for the academic year
\n1978-1979. I indulged myself in the intellectual richness of
\nHarvard and managed to sit in at a graduate seminar on political
\ndevelopments in non-Western countries, chaired by Prof. Samuel
\nHuntington.<\/p>\n
For whatever misunderstandings that took place during my
\nabsence while I was enjoying the stimulating environment of
\nHarvard, on my return home I found that the publisher, H.D.
\nRorimpandey, had decided to relieve me of my position as deputy
\nchief editor.<\/p>\n
I was given the lofty title of senior editorial writer and
\ncould cover major international events while producing a few
\neditorials a week. I also had more time to take part in seminars
\norganized by CSIS and covered OPEC meetings with Fikri Jufri of
\nTempo newsweekly, in Vienna, Geneva and Caracas.<\/p>\n
It was amid this situation that I was offered the job of chief
\neditor of an English-language newspaper that was yet to be
\npublished. As I was agonizing between plunging myself into a new
\nadventure and remaining in an undefined situation, I read in the
\nStraits Times of Singapore that a new English-language newspaper
\nwas soon to be published in Jakarta, with the \"temperamental\"
\nSabam Siagian as chief editor, Amir Daud, who at one time worked
\nat Pedoman newspaper in Jakarta as managing editor, and
\nMoh.Chudori, of Antara news agency, as general manager.<\/p>\n
The news item also indicated that the new publication was a
\ncooperative effort among three major media publishing
\nenterprises. It was clearly a case of forcing my hand to take a
\ndecision, but I did not react.<\/p>\n
Fikri was then apparently assigned to get a clear answer from
\nme. He told me I was leading too easy a life, writing a few
\neditorials a week while listening to Beethoven symphonies and
\nordering flowers whenever the flower vendor happened to pass by.<\/p>\n
Since the pressure became too serious, I finally said that I
\nwas not soliciting a job, although my situation was not that
\nideal. However, if my services were wanted due to whatever
\nprofessional reputation I had, then my condition would be that PT
\nSinar Kasih, the publishing company of Sinar Harapan, should be
\ninvolved as a partner in the new enterprise. My consideration was
\nthat it would strengthen my position because my status in the
\ncompany would then be more than that of an ordinary employee.<\/p>\n
It seemed, however, that the condition that I was setting was
\ncausing a problem. Some of the partners did not want to see
\ntheir shares reduced in order to pave the way for PT Sinar Kasih
\nto join. When finally 10 percent of shares could be allocated to
\nPT Sinar Kasih, primarily due to the intervention of Eric Samola
\nof PT Graffiti\/Tempo, who was also the publisher of PT Bina Media
\nTenggara, the publishing company that would publish The Jakarta
\nPost, a new problem arose.<\/p>\n
I vividly remember a meeting in late March 1983 at the CSIS
\nbuilding on Jl.Tanah Abang III-27, in which H.G. Rorimpandey was
\namong those present. Pak Rorim, who during the revolution in the
\nlate 1940s served as a young officer in the Siliwangi Division in
\nWest Java, was a man of considerable self-esteem. He told the
\nmeeting that whenever he took part in a new venture, it was
\nusually as a prominent partner, and a figure of 10 percent was
\ntoo small for him.<\/p>\n
I derived some pleasure from sensing the tension in the
\nmeeting room. The original group of partners, however, saw the
\nneed to have me as chief editor and tried to comply with Pak's
\nwishes. On the other hand, I sensed that Pak Rorim, while
\nremaining steadfast in his position did not push strongly his
\ndemand of a greater percentage shares for PT Sinar Kasih. After
\nall, releasing me from Sinar Harapan daily to become the Chief
\nEditor of The Jakarta Post was a graceful solution.<\/p>\n
Finally, a compromise was made. A few percentages were added
\nto the total share of PT Sinar Kasih. At last, a new publishing
\ncompany, PT Bina Media Tenggara, a joint venture of 4 partners
\nwith different background and corporate cultures, was officially
\nestablished. And a new English newspaper in Indonesia was about
\nto be born.<\/p>\n
In the early morning of April 25, 1983, when I saw the first
\ncopies of The Jakarta Post rolling off the presses at PT
\nGramedia's printing plant, I suddenly remembered the title of a
\nbook written by the venerable U.S. Secretary of State, Dean
\nAcheson. The work, Present at the Creation - My Years at the
\nState Department (1969, W.W. Norton and Company), described his
\nexperiences during the years immediately after the end of World
\nWar II in 1945, when he and a number of colleagues discussed,
\nformulated and designed the architecture of U.S. global policy in
\nfacing the Soviet Union as an emerging adversary.<\/p>\n
In my case, however, I felt during those early morning hours
\nthat I had been practically grabbed into the efforts to create a
\nnewspaper whose profile was not clear and whose acceptance by the
\ncommunity was not at all certain. What was clear was that this
\nnew involvement would change the routine of my life.<\/p>",
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