Press freedom in peril<\/p>\n
Charges of abuse of freedom which have been hurled at the
\nmedia from several quarters in recent months only go to show how
\nprecarious press freedom still is in this country even in the
\nreform era, and how unused we are to the workings of a democratic
\nsociety.<\/p>\n
One of the first and most scathing public attacks came in
\nJanuary from none other than President B.J. Habibie. In his
\nspeech presenting the state budget to the House of
\nRepresentatives, of all places, he urged legislators to pay
\nattention to the media's abuse of newly instituted reforms which
\nexceeded tolerable boundaries.<\/p>\n
The latest to earn the wrath of some lesser leading
\npersonalities in our political elite are the Jakarta newspapers
\nSinar Pagi and Merdeka -- the first for calling Golkar's recent
\nparty declaration during a mass rally at the Senayan sports
\nstadium "bland", the second for reporting that the rain-drenched
\nevent was "struck by lightning".<\/p>\n
To some extent, such sensitivity to unflattering publicity is
\nentirely understandable. After all, it has been less than 10
\nmonths since this nation was freed from the yoke of 32 years of
\ndictatorial rule under the New Order regime.<\/p>\n
What makes the whole thing rather deplorable is that besides
\nPresident Habibie, who has the power to curb existing freedoms,
\nthe strongest condemnation of the so-called abuse of freedom has
\nso far come from legislators. This is despite the fact they are
\nsupposed to understand that, as the late American President
\nFranklin D. Roosevelt put it, some of the fundamentals of
\ndemocracy would be nullified should freedom of the press ever be
\nsuccessfully challenged.<\/p>\n
It is ironic in the extreme to hear Minister of Information
\nMuhammad Yunus come to the defense of press freedom during a
\nHouse hearing on Monday, fending off legislators' griping that
\ntoo much freedom was turning many press publications into
\n"provocateurs who confuse the people and incite them to commit
\nacts of mass brutality".<\/p>\n
To be sure, not all of the innumerable newspapers, tabloids
\nand newsmagazines that have appeared since Soeharto's resignation
\nlast May have exercised the same degree of restraint and
\nresponsibility in their reporting of current events in this
\ncountry. Quite a number have indeed gone overboard in their
\nefforts to attract the attention of readers, using sensational
\nreports and headlines that could cause some faces to turn red
\nwith rage or embarrassment.<\/p>\n
However, as Muhammad Yunus correctly pointed out, there are
\nlaws to protect people against libel and using them would serve
\nthe interests of the community better than curbing the press. As
\nfor allegations of media-induced acts of mass brutality, the
\nminister challenged the legislators to produce proof.<\/p>\n
All of which merely reaffirms that despite the freedom the
\nIndonesian media enjoys at present, this most fundamental of
\nliberties is still not something it can take for granted.
\nInstead, it must be constantly watched and worked for.<\/p>\n
Self-evident though it may seem, there is the need to
\nconstantly point out that there has not been a single case so far
\nof media-induced mass disorder or "brutality". This in itself is
\nheartening proof the Indonesian public in general is capable of
\nsorting out the trustworthy from the questionable, more so,
\nperhaps, than some of our better educated and better positioned
\nlegislators and officials.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/press-freedom-in-peril-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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