Mediator sought for media disputes<\/p>\n
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Dozens of members of journalist associations rallied on Monday
\noutside the Supreme Court here to demand that the court sanction
\nthe Press Council as a mediation body for disputes involving the
\nmedia.<\/p>\n
The associations, grouped under the Committee against
\nCriminalization of the Press, also demanded that the Supreme
\nCourt order judges to use the Press Law instead of the Criminal
\nCode in any disputes over news coverage.<\/p>\n
\"We expect the Supreme Court to approve the Press Council as a
\nmediation center for disputes over news reports. We also expect
\nthem to issue regulations ordering lower courts to appoint the
\nPress Council as a mediator when they hear such cases,\" committee
\nspokesman Misbahuddin Gasma said.<\/p>\n
He said such regulations were mandatory to give substance to
\nthe Press Council as a mediation body.<\/p>\n
Another activist, Ni'am Yusron, said the court's verdicts that
\nconvicted journalists in recent libel cases had made journalists
\nacross the country apprehensive, particularly those in the
\nregions.<\/p>\n
Recently, Tempo magazine chief editor Bambang Harymurti was
\ngiven a one-year prison sentence after the court found the weekly
\nguilty of defaming businessman Tomy Winata.<\/p>\n
The protesters later met the Supreme Court's deputy clerk
\nSatri Rusyad to convey their demand because most senior Supreme
\nCourt officials, including Chief Justice Bagir Manan, were
\nattending a meeting in Semarang.<\/p>\n
Bagir has said he hailed the Press Council's intention to
\nmediate disputes involving the media. However, he said such a
\nregulation was not mandatory because the decision to seek the
\nPress Council's help would depend on the plaintiff.<\/p>\n
He said judges could only urge the disputing parties to seek
\nmediation to help them solve the problems. However, Bagir
\npromised to discuss it during the judges working meeting.<\/p>\n
Press Council member Hinca Panjaitan said the council offered
\nto serve as a mediation center because it would take the Supreme
\nCourt more time to draft and enforce regulations ordering lower
\ncourts not to criminalize the press.<\/p>\n
The offer came as a response to the growing number of libel
\nsuits against the press, in which the courts usually use the
\nCriminal Code to settle the cases, he said.<\/p>\n
\"The Press Law actually says that the Press Council shall
\nmediate disputes involving the media. But, we need legal
\nrecognition,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Mediation has been a more effective and efficient means to
\nsettle disputes involving the media than legal proceedings, said
\nHinca.<\/p>\n
The Press Council mediated a dispute between Jawa Pos daily
\nand former chief of the Indonesian Military Staff and Command
\nCollege Lt. Gen. Djadja Suparman last year. The two agreed to
\nmake peace after Jawa Pos apologized for its unverified report.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mediator-sought-for-media-disputes-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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