Freedom of the press promised

MEDAN (JP): A senior information ministry official has promised that publishing permits will be more easily obtained in the reform era and that press publications will be able to work free from the threat of being banned.

Director General of Press and Graphics Dailami Rusli said here on Saturday that the ministry was making a serious effort to ensure there would be no more press banning. He was speaking during the launch of the Realita Pos daily in the North Sumatra capital.

He said that 600 publishing permits -- known by the local acronym of SIUPP -- are now in existence, 333 of which have been issued since former president Soeharto resigned from office on May 21.

In North Sumatra alone, 37 permits are in existence, 22 of which have been issued since May. However, only the owners of six of the 22 new permits have so far used them to publish.

"I urge the new permit holders to publish soon because it would be a shame if we have to revoke them if they are not used for six months," Dailami said, adding that unused permits would be returned to the Ministry of Information.

Among new publications to have recently appeared in North Sumatra are the weekly tabloid Aneka Minggu owned by Ibrahim Sinik, the Fokus Informasi tabloid managed by Donald Sibaladok, and Koreksi, Panji Demokrasi and Suara Nusantara.

Ibrahim, who owns the Medan Pos Group, now holds six permits. "If necessary, I will get 20 permits," he said.

"I love reading. Make newspapers your life," said Ibrahim, who has worked as a journalist since 1955. (21/edt)