Anticorruption campaign and press freedom

Abdullah Alamudi , Jakarta

December will witness Indonesia's drive to eradicate its most serious and deepest social disease: Corruption. On Friday, the President is scheduled to attend an informal meeting on the plan to launch an anticorruption campaign. Next Thursday, he will sign a presidential decree on the Anticorruption Action Plan. The anticorruption campaign, from Dec. 3 to Dec. 14, is part of Indonesia's participation in the UN day against corruption, which falls on Dec. 9.

President Susilo has made corruption eradication his first priority. So much so that he himself will lead the campaign.

However, anticorruption campaigns and promises have become too familiar to us -- from the days of the nation's first president, Sukarno, to Soeharto to Habibie and Abdurrahman Wahid. In fact, during her first days in office, Megawati Soekarnoputri told the nation that she would not allow any member of her family to misuse the power that came with her presidency. Political observers, however, say that corruption was also rampant during her rule.

If Susilo is really serious about corruption eradication, he should promote checks and balances among the three pillars of democracy -- executive, legislative and judicial -- and fully support the fourth, the press, as the watchdog of an open and accountable government. But the press must be free. Only a free press can provide independent reports.

During the presidential election campaign, both Susilo and his running mate, Jusuf Kalla, promised that the new government would not reestablish the notorious Ministry of Information (Deppen). Now there is the Office of the State Minister of Communications and Information, an office first created by Megawati in 2001, to replace Deppen, which had been dissolved by Abdurrahman Wahid in 1999.

Staff members of the current office also worked under the office during Megawati's tenure. According to many members of the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI), the Indonesian Press and Broadcasting Society (MPPI) and the Coalition for the Public's Right to Freedom of Information, their way of thinking is still under the old paradigm -- all information is closed, with some exceptions. On the other hand, the MPPI and the Coalition insist that, in a democracy, all information is open with a few exceptions.

So much so that, last week, the KPI sent to Susilo a draft of 147 articles on rules and regulations that govern the operations and conduct of broadcasting institutions.

The move was taken to counter a package of seven different drafts prepared by the Office, which the KPI, the MPPI and the Coalition considered controversial, and contrary to the public's right to information.

It remains to be seen whether Susilo and State Minister of Communications and Information Sofyan Djalil, who seems to be more open-minded than his predecessor, can steer the Office toward being more inclusive of the new paradigm. We also want to see whether, as a retired Army general, Susilo is sincerely appreciative of press freedom.

Under the prevailing Broadcasting Law, the KPI is an independent regulatory body, similar to the U.S. Federal Communications Commission or the British Broadcasting Authority, or those in Australia and Germany.

The law stipulates that only the government can issue government regulations, but the same law also rules that the KPI has the right to make rules and regulations regarding broadcasting, and the government must abide by the law. Since the President, the vice president and Cabinet ministers, swore, in their oaths, to abide by the law and uphold the 1945 Constitution, the public is now waiting to see whether or not they will uphold Article 28 of the Constitution, which guarantees press freedom.

Susilo cannot rely only on government officials or intelligence agencies' reports, which are also tarnished by corruption. Susilo needs all the independent reports he can gather in order to make good decisions, since a good decision is based on well-informed input.

Press freedom can provide the government with the information it needs to combat corruption, make Susilo's Anticorruption Action Plan work, and allow for an open society.

The writer is a senior journalist, a lecturer at Dr. Soetomo Press Institute and a member of the Indonesian Press and Broadcasting Society (MPPI). He can be reached at abdullahalamudi@yahoo.com .