Decree on publication licensing to stay

Decree on publication licensing to stay

JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Information Harmoko said yesterday
the ministerial decree on publication licensing, which allows the
government to effectively ban publications without judicial
procedures, was here to stay.

Speaking to the press after meeting with President Soeharto,
Harmoko said Monday's ratification by the House of
Representatives of a bill on broadcasting means the Press Law,
established 14 years ago, must be revised accordingly because of
overlapping sections in the two documents.

The Broadcasting Law contains a code of ethics for broadcast
journalism, which is already covered in the Press Law. In
addition, the Broadcasting Law has provisions for technological
advancement which may affect the print media, which is regulated
by the Press Law.

However, a lower-level ministerial decree on publication
permits would stay, Harmoko said. "That will remain, because it's
still needed to protect press publication, press workers and the
public," Harmoko said.

The Press Law says national publications are not subject to
press banning. However, under the ministerial decree, the
government may revoke a publication's permit, a measure which
observers say is tantamount to press banning.

Based on the decree, in 1994 Minister Harmoko closed down
three leading newsweeklies known for their critical reporting of
government policies, namely Tempo, Editor and DeTik.

Tempo was faulted for its editorial content, while the banning
of Editor and DeTik was attributed to "administrative
violations."

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court overturned the decisions
of the Jakarta State Administrative Court and the Jakarta State
Administrative High Court allowing Tempo to resume publication.
The Supreme Court said the Information Minister's decision to
revoke the magazine's publishing license was "lawful" and was not
against the Press Law.

The Press Law was set up in 1966, revised the next year, and
again in 1982. The ministerial decree was established in 1984.

A number of legislators have said that the newly ratified
Broadcasting Law is "progressive" because they believed it
stipulates that only the court has the authority to revoke
private broadcasting stations' permits.

The document actually makes no reference about judicial
procedures said to be needed to revoke a broadcasting permit.

Yesterday, Harmoko said President Soeharto still had to sign
and enact the Broadcasting Law. In addition, a number of
directives need to be prepared before the law could be
implemented effectively.

Harmoko said the government would ask the Press Honorary
Council, and related bodies such as the Indonesian Journalists
Association and the Newspaper Publishers Association, to discuss
the planned revision on the Press Law. (swe)