Internet discussion debates censorship<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government should use the Internet as a
\nmedium to counter erroneous information about Indonesia and not
\ncensor it, mass communications wizards said yesterday.<\/p>\n
During a discussion called "Internet, Censorship and the
\nChallenge of an Open Society" yesterday, speakers concluded that
\nthe Internet should be used to disseminate information.<\/p>\n
The seminar was held to commemorate International Press
\nFreedom Day.<\/p>\n
Farid Gaban from the Republika daily described the Net as a
\nfierce "clash of information" and said it was the best way to
\ncounter biased information.<\/p>\n
"Don't close it down, but reply to and counter the
\ninformation," said Farid, who manages the paper's Republika on-
\nline homepage.<\/p>\n
Although magazines and newspapers require publishing licenses
\nin Indonesia, any institution can set up an Internet homepage and
\ndistribute information without a permit.<\/p>\n
Several employees of the now defunct Tempo magazine have taken
\nadvantage of this and established an electronic magazine on the
\nInternet called Tempo Interaktif.<\/p>\n
Bambang Bujono, who runs Tempo Interaktif, said there have
\nbeen no attempts to censor the information.<\/p>\n
Launched just two months ago, Tempo Interaktif now boasts some
\n3,200 users located in 25 countries. Half the readers live in
\nIndonesia, with other major concentrations living in the United
\nStates and Australia respectively.<\/p>\n
There is also a user from as far out as Uzbekistan. "That's
\nprobably from our embassy there," Bambang remarked.<\/p>\n
Apart from urging the government not to censor the Internet,
\nthe speakers noted that technically it was an extremely difficult
\nto censor the Net effectively.<\/p>\n
Feraldi W. Loeis from the Radnet Internet provider service
\nexplained how easy it is to evade detection and filtering.<\/p>\n
The government has indicated that it intends to regulate
\ninformation on the Internet. How it will do so remains unclear.<\/p>\n
According to Feraldi, his company has never been ordered to
\ncensor politically sensitive material. "We've haven't been asked
\nto censor anyone," he claimed.<\/p>\n
The only material Radnet Internet has been asked to curb is
\npornographic material. He added that his company has closed
\naccess to material the company considers vulgar.<\/p>\n
Feraldi remarked that censorship violates the Internet's code
\nof ethics, which he said is a medium that is limitless,
\nuncensored and which provides two-way benefits.<\/p>\n
Apart from being technically unable to censor the Internet,
\nthe government's leniency towards the flow of information on the
\nNet stems from the fact that very few Indonesians have access to
\nit. There are 12,000 subscribers in Indonesia.(mds)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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