A continuing journey to meet future challenges

A continuing journey to meet future challenges

Jusuf Wanandi, Co-founder and member,
Board of Trustees Centre for Strategic and International Studies

Before The Jakarta Post was established in 1983, there were
two English dailies, The Indonesian Observer and The Jakarta
Times (later The Indonesian Times).

Both were considered weak in influence and capacity due to
limited resources, human and capital. This led to the idea for a
third English newspaper, with quality in mind and adequate
circulation to make a real impact.

The paper was aimed at not only the Indonesian public and
foreigners living in Indonesia, but also the Southeast Asia
region, where Indonesia as the biggest nation and anchor of the
region is not sufficiently known and understood.

In this particular objective, the Post has been successful
through its website, now regularly quoted globally.

In the early 1980s, there was indeed an urgent need to make
Indonesia better known in the region. As a respectable and
credible paper, The Jakarta Post could assist in these efforts.
But the most important objective of the founders was to have a
credible English paper in Jakarta that could express Indonesian
ideas, visions and thoughts on the nation's development,
struggles and achievements to the foreign community in Indonesia
and to the Southeast Asia region.

The paper, initiated by some members of the Indonesian-
language press (Suara Karya, Kompas, Tempo magazine and Suara
Pembaruan), was also intended to become a vehicle to express
thoughts about their own quest for modernity, freedom, and
democracy to the Indonesian elite.

It was not an easy beginning. The first five years were full
of challenges, particularly how to get a good editorial staff,
since you need a special breed of people who are willing to
become journalists, which presupposes some idealism and an inner
courage.

But you need people that also have adequate skills in the
English language. My colleague and friend Sabam Siagian, the
editor for the first eight years until he became ambassador to
Australia, somehow managed to get together a team that we could
be really proud of.

The greatest contribution the Post has made so far was during
the Soeharto era. Because it was published in English, it was
able to put forward open criticism about mistakes and the wrongs
of the Soeharto regime. This would not have been possible in the
Indonesian language.

The Post could evade the ever-present eyes of the censor and
the military. It has held the standard of its mission and ideals
very high. It was able to express new ideas for modernity,
democracy and freedom of' thought and expressions as well as
freedom from fear, torture and disappearances during the
authoritarian regime.

The Post and its people should be proud that so few a number
could become such a defining factor in the struggle to establish
an open, democratic, and plural society in Indonesia. These were
fine moments for the Post.

After Soeharto resigned and the regime collapsed, a new era
began in 1998, and the multiple crises and difficulties also
affected the Post. The challenges became more complicated. During
the Soeharto era the Post was the main daily that could be very
straightforward in giving its thoughts and criticism, and
therefore, occupied a certain niche among its readers, two-thirds
of which are the Indonesian elite. In the new democratic fervor
after 1998, that advantage was to a very large extent gone.

The Post has to find a new strategy and a new approach, while
the vision and main mission are still very much intact. It has to
improve and to adjust to the new situation, where democracy and
the emergence of civil society demand credible information and
news from a trustworthy daily such as The Jakarta Post.

To be able to do all that, the Post has to have trustworthy
professionals, who have integrity and compassion; to others;
pluralist in outlook, honest and efficient, and work with
dedication and thoroughness.

To be able to nurture this new breed of professionals is now
the most urgent task of the management of the Post. But it is now
even more difficult than before. The younger generation today
undergo tertiary education that is very limited in quality,
especially in logic and general knowledge. In addition, they have
high mobility and are very prone to switching jobs, and loyalty
to the company is shallower than of earlier generations.

The Post has trained young journalists who after a couple of
years moved to other fields: television, public relations,
consultancy, foreign media and others. That is why the challenge
is to create an environment that attracts young professionals,
where some idealism also could be instilled besides training and
education in professionalism and knowledge. The financial reward
should be adequate and competitive.

The format and the layout of the paper have been upgraded,
revamped and made more compact and concise because there are so
many competitive sources of information that are readily
available, from websites and the electronic media, TV, to
specialized magazines.

The Post is very thankful to the management and editors of The
Straits Times of Singapore, especially Felix Soh, the deputy
editor, who has worked so hard to assist us in creating the
"face" of the new Post.

Last but not least, management and business improvements are
also important, because the economic crisis in Indonesia has not
been overcome, and the business climate globally also has slowed
down, affecting the Post as with other newspapers in Indonesia.

There is a new generation that will take over leadership at
the Post in the next few years. The Post is very proud of them
and their capabilities. At the same time, a lot more should be
done to improve all aspects of the Post, both in editorial and
business management.

Efforts to prepare for the future must be ongoing. Only then
could we expect the Post to achieve its mission and contribute to
establishing a humane, pluralistic and democratic Indonesia.