Journalists questioned over `RCTI'

Journalists questioned over `RCTI'

A'an Suryana and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Lhokseumawe/Jakarta

North Aceh Police summoned on Tuesday journalists, who met with
RCTI reporter Ersa Siregar and others on Sunday at a separatist
Free Aceh Movement (GAM) base at Peureulak district, North Aceh,
in an apparent move to place criminal charges against Ersa.

The journalists were questioned as witnesses in a case built
against Ersa, following a report from Lt. Col. Azhari, whose wife
Syafrida traveled with Ersa and his team from Lhokseumawe to
Langsa, which ended in a hostage drama.

Ersa, his cameraman Ferry Santoro, Syafrida, her sister Soraya
and driver Rachmansyah were still with GAM rebels as of Tuesday
evening.

In his report to the North Aceh Police last week, Azhari
accused Ersa of taking away Syafrida without his consent.

To follow up the case, the police questioned a group of
journalists who met with Ersa and the four others in an
unidentified location in Peureulak on Sunday.

"The journalists were summoned as witnesses in the case,"
First. Insp. Afriadi Lesmana, the chief of North Aceh Police
detectives, told reporters in Lhokseumawe.

The four journalists summoned were Gustav Roberto of private
television station Indosiar, Anggi Mulya Makmur of TV-7TV station
and Orin Basuki of Kompas daily. RCTI deputy chief editor Iman
Wachjudi was previously questioned by North Aceh Police on Monday
night, on the same day the TV station screened the meeting.

The meeting was also publicized by the print media.

The military is apparently angered by the wide coverage of the
meeting in the national media.

Gustav said that he was questioned by North Aceh Police
detectives from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. while Anggi said that during the
questioning, he was asked to explain in chronological order how
he and other journalists met Ersa and group and their
communications with rebels in arranging the meeting.

"Besides, we were also questioned on why Syafrida and Soraya
joined Ersa's group," Anggi said.

The status of Ersa in the eyes of the police remains unclear.

Afriadi said, however, that the police would summon another
witness Effendy Soen who met Ersa and others somewhere in
Peureulak district, shortly before Ersa went missing on June 29.

He added that he was not sure when the case would be brought
to court.

In Jakarta, Indonesian Military Commander Gen. Endriartono
Sutarto expressed confusion over the meeting's exposure by the
national media, saying he was skeptical of the TV crew's
abduction because the meeting was arranged so easily.

"We initially believed that Ersa and others were being held
hostage by GAM and therefore we were preparing efforts to free
them. But, now, I am skeptical about the abduction because the
journalists were able to meet the kidnapped TV crew so easily,"
he said on the sidelines of a hearing with the House of
Representatives.

The military gave GAM the deadline of 6 p.m. on Tuesday to
release the hostages, otherwise the rebels would be in "a
difficult situation". The deadline was made following the
discovery of the RCTI Kijang minivan in a oil palm plantation in
Peureulak over the weekend.