Mega tells party to OK broadcasting bill<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post,
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan)
\nchairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri told party legislators Tuesday
\nto endorse the broadcasting bill despite strong objections by
\nactivists and employees of television and radio stations.<\/p>\n
During a meeting with party leaders Tuesday evening, Megawati,
\nwho is also the President, said that the deliberation of the bill
\nwas already over and that legislators had to endorse the draft as
\nsoon as possible.<\/p>\n
\"The President underlined that since the House special
\ncommittee that deliberated the bill had already reached an
\nagreement, the bill should be endorsed,\" the party's faction
\nchairman in the House, Roy B.B. Janis, told The Jakarta Post
\nafter the meeting that ended almost at midnight.<\/p>\n
The House on Tuesday had decided to endorse the bill on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
Roy said that during the meeting Megawati urged all members to
\ncomply with the procedures and \"should there be a strong
\nrejection by the public, the bill can still be revised\".<\/p>\n
\"There is always room to revise the law. If we can amend the
\n1945 Constitution, then we can do the same with laws,\" Roy
\nremarked.<\/p>\n
Earlier on Tuesday, the party's deputy secretary-general,
\nPramono Anung, underlined that the PDI Perjuangan fully supported
\nfreedom of the press and that the views of the media community
\nshould be heeded.<\/p>\n
\"The party supports the freedom of the press and believes that
\nthe media should be accorded a respected position in the
\ncommunity,\" Pramono remarked.<\/p>\n
The bill was slated to be endorsed during Monday's plenary
\nsession. However, due to the absence of many legislators the
\nendorsement was put back.<\/p>\n
Monday's plenary meeting was also marked by a rowdy protest by
\ntelevision journalists saying that the bill, which had been under
\ndiscussion for the past two years, would only limit the country's
\nbroadcasting industry's freedom and discourage investment.<\/p>\n
The bill limits media cross-ownership and gives authority to
\nthe government to issue regulations on broadcasting.<\/p>\n
It also restricts TV stations from relaying their programs
\nacross the country without collaborating with local TV stations
\nby setting up networks.<\/p>\n
The campaign over the bill has been gathering steam over the
\npast months with many private TV stations airing round-the-clock
\ncommercials urging the rejection of the bill.<\/p>\n
However, State Minister for Information and Communications
\nSyamsul Muarif contended that both the House and government had
\naccommodate the views of the TV stations.<\/p>\n
Also on Monday, House Speaker Akbar Tandjung cited the
\nimportance to accommodate the views of the public following the
\nrejection of the bill by the media community.<\/p>\n
In sharp contrast, Megawati said that there was no way for her
\nas President or the chairwoman of the country's largest party to
\nhalt the deliberation process.<\/p>\n
The House of Representatives' Steering Committee (Bamus) has
\ndecided that the broadcasting bill will be brought before a
\nplenary meeting for endorsement on Thursday, closing off any
\nchances for further revision.<\/p>\n
The House insisted that no more discussions were needed over
\nthe much debated draft saying that the debate stage came to an
\nend as soon as the House special committee finished its
\ndeliberations earlier this month.<\/p>\n
\"The endorsement of the broadcasting bill is scheduled for
\nNov. 28,\" House deputy speaker Muhaimin Iskandar said after a
\nmeeting here on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
He criticized the media for applying double standards in their
\nreports. \"When the House failed to reach a quorum on the
\nendorsement of the broadcasting bill, many people were happy,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
A number of legislators admitted that they had received
\nmessages via their cellular phones urging them not to attend
\nMonday's plenary session.<\/p>\n
Noviantika Nasution of the PDI Perjuangan admitted she had
\nbeen absent from the meeting, but denied speculation she had
\nintentionally boycotted it.<\/p>\n
\"I just got back from Bangkok at around 3:00 p.m. on Monday
\nafter attending an international conference of political
\nparties,\" Noviantika claimed.<\/p>\n
A legislator from the United Development Party (PPP) disclosed
\nthat the sender of the messages was Uni Lubis from the Indonesian
\nBroadcasting Television Association (ATVSI).<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mega-tells-party-to-ok-broadcasting-bill-1447893297",
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