Legislature approves new press bill

JAKARTA (JP): As anticipated, the House of Representatives approved on Monday a new law which guarantees freedom of the press.

Comprising 21 articles, including one which protects the press from bans and one which provides for fines or jail terms for those who block the access of on-duty journalists, the bill will replace the 1982 Press Law which was sponsored by then minister of information Harmoko, the current Speaker of the House.

Harmoko did not attend the House session and was represented by his deputy, Lt. Gen. Hari Sabarno. The government was represented by Minister of Information Muhammad Yunus Yosfiah.

Both the government and the House, however, said the bill was not aimed at creating a liberal press.

The chairwoman of House Commission I for security and defense, law, politics and information, Aisyah Amini, said the bill would protect the national press from bans.

"The press must be free from banning, intimidation and restrictions. However, given this freedom, the press must comply with the supremacy of law, the journalistic code of ethics and their own consciences," she said.

At least seven media publications were banned or temporarily suspended under Soeharto's New Order regime for running stories which offended or insulted the government.

The new bill also stipulates a maximum fine of Rp 500 million or a jail term of up to two year for individuals, officials and institutions which violate the freedom of the press.

The spokesman for the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) faction in the House, Y.B. Wiyanjono, called on the press to improve its role in promoting democracy.

"The bill should give the press a boost in promoting democratic values, spreading public opinion based on accurate and correct information, exercising social control and fighting for justice and truth," he said.

He also warned the national press against covering events or advocating ideas which violated religious norms and the principle of presumed innocence.

According to the new bill, individual publishers and publishing companies no longer require a license from the government to operate, but simply must make public the addresses and chief editors of their publications.

The bill also requires the press council, whose function is to uphold press freedom and the journalistic code of ethics, to make a list of all media. Previously regarded as an extension of the government, the press council will now consist entirely of journalists with no government representatives.

An observer of mass communications, Ahmad Zaini, applauded the House's approval of the bill, saying it would allow the press to exercise its "coercive power" in the public's interest.

The Yogyakarta-based observer also hailed the bill for requiring the press to abide by moral and religious norms.

Survey

Meanwhile, Media Watch Society unveiled a survey which concluded that the public feared press coverage of recent events could cause national disintegration.

The survey revealed that 75 percent of the 400 respondents, about half of them university students, reacted unfavorably to the national press' coverage of events in East Timor, Ambon and Aceh.

Of the respondents, 12.4 percent said Rakyat Merdeka daily had the most potential to cause disintegration, followed by Aksi tabloid with 10.7 percent and Kompas daily with 9.4 percent.

Respondents were asked to read news reports printed in five dailies, five weekly tabloids and seven weekly magazines.

"The survey was conducted to gauge the public's judgment of news reports, which very much contain racial, religious and ethnic issues," said the director of the group, Priyono B. Sumbogo. (05/44/rms)