Media executives against plan on foreign investment<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) and
\nthe Association of Newspaper Publishers (SPS) are closing ranks
\nagainst the government's plan to open up their industry to
\nforeign investors.<\/p>\n
Minister of Information Harmoko meanwhile expressed surprise
\nat the government's decision, included in the latest deregulation
\npackage, saying that he was never consulted.<\/p>\n
Harmoko insisted that as far as he was concerned, the
\nIndonesian media remains closed to foreigners as stipulated in
\nthe 1982 Press Law.<\/p>\n
As the official who grants the SIUPP, the publishers license,
\nthe minister said he would see to it that no foreigner will ever
\nhave a say in the running of a domestic press or broadcast
\nconcern.<\/p>\n
He also pointed out that a law takes precedence over a
\ngovernment regulation, upon which the new rule allowing foreign
\nownership is based.<\/p>\n
Harmoko said there was poor coordination between ministry
\nofficials as \"nobody asked for consultation from me before the
\nnew policy was announced\".<\/p>\n
PWI Chairman Sofjan Lubis meanwhile said that given the
\ncontradiction between the new regulation and the existing press
\nlaw, the government should review its decision, the Antara news
\nagency reported.<\/p>\n
SPS Chairman Handjojo Nitimihardjo remarked that the new
\nregulation \"is an incredible challenge to SPS\".<\/p>\n
He said the organization was currently still trying to find
\nways of keeping down soaring prices of newspaper paper, \"and now
\nwe are confronted with yet a new problem\".<\/p>\n
Mission<\/p>\n
He joined hands with Sofjan in calling on the government to
\nreconsider its decision to allow foreigners into the press and
\nbroadcasting industry.<\/p>\n
\"Foreign media would surely be profit oriented ...The
\nIndonesian press has a mission, that is educate the nation ...
\nbased on Pancasila,\" Handjojo said.<\/p>\n
The media executives took their time to prepare their official
\nreaction to the government ruling and it was members of the House
\nof Representatives (DPR) who were the first to pick up the cause,
\ndeclaring that the Indonesian media was not for sale.<\/p>\n
Many DPR members on Friday had already warned that allowing
\nforeign control of the Indonesian press would cause irreparable
\ndamage to the nation.<\/p>\n
A more cautious comment however came from Goenawan Mohamad,
\nthe chief editor of the Tempo magazine, who pointed out that the
\nruling was inevitable given that Indonesia is a signatory of the
\nnewly updated General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which
\ncalls for a comprehensive liberalization of trade and investment.<\/p>\n
\"The new situation just has to be accepted,\" Goenawan told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
He offered a word of wisdom on the benefits of competition
\nfrom outsiders. \"It might just encourage competition. Who knows?\"<\/p>\n
He said Indonesia could learn from India's experience. \"Let's
\nwait and see what happens, because Indonesia does not seem to be
\nafraid to open up its mass media (to foreign ownership)\".<\/p>\n
Confused<\/p>\n
Goenawan also pointed out that the government \"seemed
\nconfused\" over the legal force of regulations.<\/p>\n
He said that while the new policy, which is a government
\nregulation, clearly contradicts the 1982 Press Law, the
\ngovernment has been willing to ignore this law in the past. He
\nreferred to the ministerial decree issued by Harmoko in 1984,
\nwhich allows him to revoke press publishing licenses in
\ncontravention of the law.<\/p>\n
\"If a ministerial decree can surmount a law, then a government
\nregulation can surely do that as well,\" he said.<\/p>\n
To break out of the current confusion, Goenawan proposed that
\nthe law be amended, but this would also entail changes in the
\ngovernment regulations.<\/p>\n
\"The government should also anticipate the possibilities of
\nforeign parties intending to invest in electronic media, or those
\nwho want a share of it,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"The government would surely be embarrassed to take back its
\nregulation or repeal the Press Law. This shows that they (the
\ngovernment) do not abide by a consistent policy.\" (pwn)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/media-executives-against-plan-on-foreign-investment-1447893297",
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