Govt accused of violating freedom of expression

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

Noted artist Tisna Sanjaya will report Bandung mayor Dada Rosada to the police after officials from the Bandung city's Public Order Agency burned down his installation art works last week.

Tisna is discussing the substance of the indictment with his lawyers, but most likely the mayor will be reported to the police for insulting his work.

"We will file the report on Tuesday. The burning was an insult to my dignity as an artist and to the people's freedom of expression," Tisna told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

According to Tisna, the case began when several officials from the agency descended on Thursday last week to Babakan Siliwangi valley in Bandung, where Tisna was displaying a piece titled "Special Prayer for Death".

The work, in the shape of a ship, have been displayed since December last year, along with other installations created by Bandung artists.

The artists displayed their works in the valley, part of a protected forest, as a protest to the decision by Bandung administration that plans to build a condominium in the area.

Separately, the head of the agency, Syarief Hakim, confirmed the incident. But, he quickly asserted that the incident occurred due to a misunderstanding among his subordinates.

According to him, his subordinates perceived the installation art as garbage, because it stood amid carton boxes in the area.

He said that he had invited Tisna to visit his office to clarify the matter. He said that he was willing to apologize to Tisna over the burning of his installation.

"It was purely an accident. It was a misunderstanding, and we apologize for that," he said.

However, Tisna rejected his apology.

"An apology alone will not solve the problem. This is evidence that the government has dealt with the protest by the artists irresponsibly and in an authoritarian manner.

This is a tragedy for humanity," he said.

Tisna also argued that the burning of the installation art on Thursday last week was intentional.

He recalled that the day before the incident, he was visited by several members of the Indonesian Military (TNI).

They photographed installation art displayed by Tisna in a studio in Bandung, titled: "Toilet for Interfet, WC for TNI" and "Peeing: TNI: RP 250, Interfet: US$250".

Interfet stands for the International Force in East Timor.

Besides taking pictures in his studio, the TNI personnel also asked him not to display the installation art in the studio, as it was deemed insulting to the TNI.

Meanwhile, the head of West Java Cultural office, Memet Hamdan, supported Tisna's plan to sue the mayor.

Memet said that the burning of art works was vandalism and it could jeopardize the freedom of expression.