Journalist groups condemn assault on 'Indo Pos' dayly

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Dozens of people barged into Graha Pena, the office of Indo Pos daily, in Kebayoran Lama, South Jakarta on Tuesday evening, occupying the building for several hours and injuring two reporters.

More than 20 people from Tanah Abang in Central Jakarta, claiming to be supporters of gang leader Hercules, arrived at the building at 9:30 p.m., and demanded clarification over an article published by Indo Pos on Monday.

Indo Pos reporter Indra Bonaparte, who was present in the building, said the group claimed that they had never been interviewed by the reporter who wrote the article.

They also asked Indo Pos chief editor Irwan Setiawan to meet them to explain the article.

The article talks about a change in the situation in Tanah Abang, where a new generation of thugs have taken over the area from Hercules, who was said in the article to be studying Islam in Cirebon, West Java.

Several group members entered the building by force and went to the 10th floor to look for the reporter who wrote the article.

One reporter, identified as Rizki, who tried to calm the gang, was hit by gang members, while reporter Dilianto, who tried to help him, suffered a broken nose after being beaten up by the gang.

The gang also threatened to destroy all the computers in the building if they were not shut down.

"Fortunately, the chief editor arrived with police officers to handle the situation. South Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Guffron also arrived several minutes later. There were brief negotiations, and at 1 a.m., the gang left the building," Indra said.

Contacted separately, the writer of the article said that he did interview Hercules and did cross check other information before submitting his story to the editor.

"I am now very afraid. I can't talk to you much as I am afraid of saying something wrong. I am grounded for the time being," he told The Jakarta Post.

Meanwhile, Hercules said that the group came to the building to ask for clarification as he had never been interviewed nor asked for confirmation by the reporter.

"I never met the reporter. Also, I am not a thug. I have never extorted money from store owners or residents in Tanah Abang," he was quoted by RCTI as saying on Wednesday.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani said that he had ordered his officers to investigate the case.

"We will summon the gang members because of the attack. We will also question Hercules if necessary," he said.

Chairman of the Independent Journalists Alliance (AJI) Heru Hendratmoko urged police to investigate the attack and arrest individuals who had assaulted journalists.

"AJI condemns the attack. That is a criminal act. If people have objections over an article, they have the right to respond (through the publication) or report it to the Press Council," he told the Post.