Ban to cover council's meeting upsets reporters

Ban to cover council's meeting upsets reporters

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Dozens of reporters lodged a protest over the City Council's ban
on coverage of Friday's closed-door plenary session about the
mechanism to be used in Jakarta's gubernatorial and vice
gubernatorial election for the 2002-2007 term.

In a written statement signed by over 25 reporters covering
the City Hall and City Council, reporters said that the City
Council's stance was against the spirit of openness and violated
Law No. 40/1999 on freedom of the press.

"It violates the law as they have blocked public access to
information," said Sutiyono, coordinator of the City Hall and
City Council reporters, reading the statement.

The statement was then handed over to City Council legislators
through a security officer guarding the door of plenary session
room.

A number of reporters considered taking the case to the
police.

Sutiyono said that the decision to hold a closed-door session
could tarnish the credibility and integrity of the City Council
amid allegations of bribery and horse trading in the election
process.

"We hope that it will be the last incident in the City
Council," he added.

A reliable source said that the decision to hold a closed
meeting was made at a leadership meeting organized before
Friday's plenary session.

The source said the closed meeting was proposed by
councillors from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan), the Golkar Party, the United development Party (PPP)
and the Unity and Justice Party (PKP).

A number of reporters who had been in the plenary session room
earlier in the day were expelled by security guards seconds after
the City Council's decision (to close the meeting to reporters)
was announced.

Friday's session finally recommended that the councillors
should write down the names of their candidates or put a cross on
the ballot papers next to their name in the Sept. 11
gubernatorial and vice gubernatorial election.