Embedded journalists to cover military operations
Embedded journalists to cover military operations
Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Learning from the U.S.-led coalition in the Iraq war, the
Indonesian Military (TNI) has called on 60 local journalists who
will be embedded with its troops during their operation in
restive Aceh.
For the purpose, the journalists, who come from various print
and electronic media, will undergo four days of training provided
by the TNI at the Sangga Buana training camp belonging to the
Army's Strategic Reserve Command in the West Java town of
Karawang.
During the training, which takes place from Sunday through
Wednesday, the reporters will learn basic military capabilities
on the battlefield, including the art of survival, technical
basics of sea-landings and air drops and how to be alert for
bombs and bullets.
The training is mandatory, according to TNI spokesman Maj.
Gen. Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, for journalists who want to cover the
day-to-day operations from the front line. Each journalist will
receive a license at the end of the training.
The exercise is closed to journalists of any nationality from
the foreign media.
"I don't know whether there are any political considerations
from the Foreign Ministry (to exclude journalists working for
foreign media), but for me it is clear that we (the TNI) do not
want any disturbance during the operation," Sjafrie told a press
briefing on Friday, referring to foreign journalists who could
cause problems.
Like soldiers, the journalists will also wear bullet-proof
vests and helmets when they cover a raid on Free Aceh Movement
(GAM) camps. Sjafrie said the presence of the media would ensure
that soldiers would not violate human rights.
To provide the flow of information on the ongoing operations,
TNI has set up media centers at its headquarters in Cilangkap,
East Jakarta and the operation's central command in Lhokseumawe,
some 230 kilometers east of the Aceh capital of Banda Aceh.
The media center in Aceh will be equipped with satellite
communications to help the journalists send stories or broadcast
news across the country.
Sjafrie said that the training would be necessary for
journalists to know the dos and don'ts during operations.
"Of course the journalists won't get enough sleep or may eat a
little bit late, but those are the conditions that must be
accepted," Sjafrie said.
Media observers and practitioners have warned that the
objectivity and independence of media coverage in Aceh could be
threatened should journalists be embedded with the troops.