Committee endorses broadcast bill
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
After long deliberation, legislators and the government concluded on Thursday talks on the broadcast bill and agreed to bring it before a plenary meeting on Nov. 25 for endorsement.
The bill will replace Law No.24/1997 on broadcasting, which became ineffective with the dissolution of the information ministry in 1999.
There have been pros and cons concerning the contents of the long, overdue bill, with some groups hailing several progressive ideas that have been adopted, while others regretted the powerful role given to the government to regulate broadcasting activities.
The bill was first submitted by inter-faction legislators on June 26, 2000, but its deliberation was halted following the political bickering that led to the ouster of former president Abdurrahman Wahid in July 2001. Lawmakers resumed its deliberation last March.
Compared to Law No.24/1997, the new broadcasting bill is much more comprehensive. The bill introduces a new institution, the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI), which is expected to function as an independent monitoring body.
The broadcasting commission is designed to represent public participation and to accommodate the aspirations of the broadcasting community.
This congenial idea is, however, spoiled by a decision from lawmakers to give the government a role in determining regulations on broadcasting.
Under the new bill, the government would be given the role to take part in outlining at least 12 regulations through the issuance of government regulations.
At least three legislators, Djoko Susilo of the National Mandate Party (PAN), Bambang Sadono of Golkar and Effendi Choirie of the National Awakening Party (PKB), have openly rejected the clause.
But their voices were drowned out by the insistence of other legislators and government officials.
The major role to be handed to the government has raised concern among media observers as they said it could be prone to abuse of power by the government.
State Minister of Communications and Information Syamsul Mu'arif denied the speculation on Thursday, saying that the government would only follow the decisions of the KPI.
"The government would support KPI's decisions. All government regulations would be prepared by the KPI and the government would act as a facilitator," Syamsul said on the sidelines of a meeting, which was attended by 12 legislators.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the special House committee for the broadcasting bill, Paulus Widiyanto, said on Thursday that the substance of the bill had been criticized.
"This is the best we can do. Those who are not satisfied can submit recommendations for the proposed KPI," Paulus added.
The bill stipulates that the KPI has to be established within one year after the bill is enacted into law.
The bill also provides a period of two years and three years for radio and television stations respectively to make adjustments to rulings in the bill.
The executive director of the Indonesian Media Law and Policy Center (IMLPC), Hinca Pandjaitan, said on Thursday that the pros and cons over the endorsement of the broadcasting bill were unavoidable, because the laws were established before the stations.
"Whether we like it or not, the bill should be endorsed. All the critics can submit recommendations for revisions in the future," Hinca told The Jakarta Post.
Article 57: Penalties
Five years imprisonment or a Rp 1 billion fine for radio stations and five years imprisonment or a Rp 10 billion fine for television stations, or for anyone who violates:
1. mandatory share ownership by employees
2. regulations on cross ownership;
3. the rule that foreign broadcasts are restricted in Indonesia;
4. the stipulation that broadcasts must not contain slander, provocation, violence, pornography, gambling or racism
5. the stipulation that broadcasts must not disgrace the nation's dignity or disrupt international relations.