Indonesian press enters gray area

JAKARTA (JP): Senior journalists and media watchers warned yesterday that the press was entering unchartered waters full of uncertainty both in terms of financial survival and editorial policy.

Chief editor of DTAK tabloid, Eros Djarot, said yesterday at a discussion on press freedom that the press' biggest enemy was no longer immediate censorship or repression but uncertainty over the political and economic state of the country.

"It's not black or white anymore like it was used to be in Soeharto's era," the musician-turned-editor said.

"Then our enemy was easy, Soeharto. Now, it's the uncertainty," said Eros whose first tabloid, DTIK, was banned by the Soeharto government in 1994 along with two other publications.

Like other industries, the country's press has been hard hit by the economic crisis. Almost all publications have had to either reduce the number of pages they print or otherwise downsize their operations.

On the political front, the government has seemingly allowed more press freedom, as the press has been able to be more open in their reports.

However the ambivalence remains as President B.J. Habibie suggested recently that journalists be sorted and accredited by the issuance of some sort of license.

During yesterday's discussion senior journalist Djaffar H. Assegaff joined the chorus of condemnation against the government's suggestion that journalists be licensed.

"Journalists cannot just be licensed like medical, law or other professionals because it is contiguous against principles of freedom of expression," he said.

Despite these criticisms, the government, apparently with the full backing of the government-sanctioned board of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI), is continuing to toy with the idea.

PWI Secretary-General Parni Hadi defended the licensing plan Thursday. He said the government would press on and eventually issuing "official blue press cards".

As quoted by Antara, Parni -- Habibie's media advisor -- said that only PWI journalists with the blue national press cards would be entitled to work as journalists.

Eros, during yesterday's discussion at the Dr. Soetomo Press Institute (LPDS) warned that as political bonds are loosened, the press has to remain steadfast in its values and continue to act as a responsible entity.

As various sins of the past are unearthed, he urged journalists to avoid "trial by the press" and let "conscience and moral-intellectual responsibility" guide news reporting.

Communications expert M. Budyatna said that with greater freedom, the press must now present information in "plain language" and shed the rhetorical and equivocal vernacular of the past.

He also pointed to the need for the press to go out and uncover more inconsistencies which were acceptable practice during the Soeharto era.

"For instance, how come a civil servant who has worked for 30 years only get Rp 7 million from his pension fund?" the University of Indonesia lecturer said referring to a recent case involving a civil servant and the state-run pension scheme.

Feminist Ruth Indiah Rahayu of the women's non-government organization Kalyanamitra said one area in which the press needed to improve was its reporting on gender issues.

She charged that the press was often "sexist" in its reports.

"It's still a rampant practice by the press," Ruth said. (43/aan)