Boycott of PSSI continues

JAKARTA (JP): Sports journalists from at least 10 national and provincial print and electronic media agreed on Thursday to continue their boycott of the Soccer Association of Indonesia (PSSI) for what they termed "poor treatment".

Journalists will not cover the daily news at PSSI or its regular programs, including the youth league, the Suratin Cup junior tournament and the Independence Cup senior tournament later this month. However, they will continue to report on the activities of soccer clubs, which the journalists said were not directly connected with the association.

The boycott began early this month and PSSI chairman Agum Gumelar has refused to meet with the journalists to resolve the situation.

Ian Situmorang, chief of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Sports Journalists Association, voiced his support for the action on Thursday. He said journalists would refuse to hold a dialog with the association before the end of the Independence Cup.

"We think it will be more effective if we boycott a sporting event rather than the association itself. After that, we will consider the possibility of negotiation," he said. (ivy)