Free access to info 'key to clean govt'

Free access to info 'key to clean govt'

Ridwan Max Sijabat, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government has been accused of stalling the deliberation of a
bill on free access to information, casting doubt over its
commitment to clean and good governance.

Sabam Leo Batubara, a member of the National Press Council,
said many sides were disappointed with the government when
Minister for Information and Communications Sofyan Djalil asked
the House of Representatives to delay the debate on the bill,
which he said was less urgent.

"The strange thing is that while suspending the bill, the
House has given priority to controversial bills on state
intelligence, national defense and the amended criminal code,
which will lead to the return of an authoritarian regime," Leo
told a seminar.

The free access to information bill was proposed in 2001 along
with the press bill by the National Commission on Human Rights
and a coalition of non-governmental organizations in a bid to
build a civil society and a clean and good governance. The House
has proposed it as an initiative bill.

To start a bill's deliberation, the President needs to appoint
minister(s) who will represent the government.

The bill on free access to information requires state
institutions and officials to provide the public with all the
necessary information that affects them.

Leo questioned President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's commitment
to clean and good governance and corruption eradication since he
had not been transparent enough in running his administration.

"Indonesia will remain fertile ground for corruption and the
government's performance will remain poor if state institutions
and officials continue to keep their budgetary spending from the
public," he said.

Efforts to curb corruption in the bureaucracy and state
companies will work if the government opens up access to
information concerning budgetary spending, policymaking and law
enforcement to the press, according to Leo.

"If the bill takes effect, the finance ministry is required to
publish the total taxes it has collected, state companies such as
Pertamina and PT PLN must offer all their procurement and
development projects through public tenders and law enforcers
have to be transparent in handling corruption cases, gambling,
drug abuse, illegal logging and other high-profile crimes," he
said.

Hasto Atmodjo, commissioner of civil and political rights at
the National Commission on Human Rights, called for public
pressure to make the government go to the House to debate the
bill.

"The government is obliged to enforce the bill as soon as
possible because access to information is a fundamental human
right and part of democracy. Those who resist the bill are afraid
of being brought to justice," he said.

Made Subamia, a senior official at the Directorate General for
Human Rights Protection at the Ministry of Justice and Human
Rights, said many state institutions and public officials had
avoided the press due to frequent inaccuracy and one-sided
coverage.

"Many public officials and figures have sued mass media in
court, instead of using the press law in case of reports deemed
libelous, mostly because journalists ignore the presumption of
innocence principle," he said.

Leo said only 6 percent of around 700 print media in the
country were deemed professional. More publications will close
through 'natural selection', since they cannot meet the market's
demands for accurate, up-to-date and educative information, Leo
added.