Yunus defends press freedom<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Information Muhammad Yunus delivered
\non Monday a strong defense for freedom of the press to critical
\nlegislators, saying he would prefer \"newspapers without a
\ngovernment\" to \"a government without newspapers.\"<\/p>\n
In a hearing with the House of Representatives Commission I
\nfor political affairs and information, some of whose members have
\nlashed out at the press for allegedly abusing its newfound
\nfreedom, Yunus said that rather than criticizing the press, the
\ngovernment and the public should instead work for effective law
\nenforcement.<\/p>\n
He stated that it was poor law enforcement rather than a free
\npress that would cause the nation to disintegrate.<\/p>\n
At one of point during the lively hearing, marked by
\ninterruptions by legislators over his views on the press, Yunus
\nquoted U.S. president Thomas Jefferson's declaration, \"... were
\nit left to me to decide whether we should have a government
\nwithout newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should
\nnot hesitate even a moment to prefer the latter\".<\/p>\n
Yunus delivered the quote to address concerns raised by
\nseveral members of the commission that there was an impression
\nthat the media had become too liberal in their reports.<\/p>\n
\"The press has not yet overstepped its boundaries,\" Yunus
\nasserted.<\/p>\n
The courts<\/p>\n
To support this assertion, Yunus, an active Army lieutenant
\ngeneral, said that not many cases of press violations had come
\nbefore the courts.<\/p>\n
Rather than restricting press freedom, Yunus said it would be
\nbetter for the House to change the country's Criminal Code to
\ncover abuses by the press not yet covered by the law.<\/p>\n
He also called on journalist associations to formulate their
\nown codes of ethics and conducts. There are so far 18 journalist
\nassociations in Indonesia, Yunus informed the House.<\/p>\n
Responding to a written question about whether the government
\nconsidered it important \"to establish a new institution\" to
\nuphold the implementation of a code of ethics for journalists,
\nYunus said, \"The government supports the idea.\"<\/p>\n
Later in the hearing, he added, \"Let them (journalists)
\nregulate themselves... let's just see if the press violates the
\nCriminal Code... it is the Criminal Code which should serve as
\nour last bastion to protect the nation's pillars.\"<\/p>\n
Yunus said he was worried that government officials would
\nretard the development of the country's press if they introduced
\ntoo many regulations.<\/p>\n
Yunus cited as an example that during the New Order there were
\nonly 289 press publication licenses issued, while during the last
\n10 months the information ministry had issued a total of 731
\nlicenses, known as SIUPP.<\/p>\n
However, Yunus told the House that the government would
\nregulate the press and other broadcast media through a new law.<\/p>\n
The mass media bill is now being studied by the State
\nSecretariat and soon would be submitted to the House for
\ndeliberation, he said.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the hearing, Bachtiar Aly of the dominant Golkar
\nfaction observed there had been reports in the press which
\ncarried \"bombastic\" headlines but reported nothing of substance.<\/p>\n
Another Golkar legislator, Ariyanti Ari Sigit, and a
\nlegislator from the United Development Party, Hussein Umar, cited
\ncases of pornography spreading through the media. These cases
\ninclude pirated laser discs and video compact discs and locally
\nmade films specializing in adult themes.<\/p>\n
While promising to address the matter through the cooperation
\nof the public, Yunus said the spread of pornography occurred
\npartly because \"the market still wants it\".<\/p>\n
\"The mass media is an industry,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Yunus once served in East Timor, where he was accused of
\nissuing an order to his men to shoot foreign journalists. (aan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/yunus-defends-press-freedom-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}