New state secrecy bill threatens public rights

New state secrecy bill threatens public rights

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A highly-commended plan by the House of Representatives (DPR) to
open public access to information more widely will face a tough
challenge as the government plans to submit a state secrecy bill
for deliberation later this month.

Legislator Djoko Susilo, who heads the media and information
team set up by House Commission I, said on Tuesday that the state
secrecy bill contradicted the proposed freedom of information
bill.

"If the state secrecy bill is endorsed, the public's demand
for free access to information will not materialize because even
a low-ranking official will have the right to reject requests for
information," Djoko told The Jakarta Post here on Tuesday.

Djoko, a legislator from the Reform faction, called on the
public at large to pay serious attention to the deliberation of
the two conflicting bills.

Even in the absence of a state secrecy law, the general public
already found it difficult to obtain information from government
offices. If the state secrecy bill were to be approved, state
officials would have even more power to withhold access to
information.

According to Djoko, the two bills were diametrically opposed.
On the one hand, the freedom of information bill provided the
public with wide access to information, but on the other hand,
the state secrecy bill narrowly restricted public access.

Legislator Tumbu Saraswati of the Indonesian Democratic Party
of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) told a House plenary meeting on
Monday that the freedom of information bill would guarantee that
citizens had access to information on a wide variety of subjects
-- including debt, poverty, unemployment and human rights abuses.
But, the state secrecy bill gave a mandate to state institutions
and state enterprises to close off people's access to
information.

The proposed state secrecy bill was a serious threat to the
public's right to information as it had been listed as the 17th
out of 80 bills to go before the House for deliberation.

By comparison, the bills on political parties, the composition
of the House, and general elections, all of which were urgently
needed before the 2004 election, were listed 40th, 41st and 42nd
respectively.

"We are opposed to the state secrecy bill as it will stall
efforts to bring about a more democratic society," Djoko said.

A coalition of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) has also
voiced strong opposition to the plan to introduce the state
secrecy bill, claiming it would be a setback for the reform
process.

Article by article comparison

Freedom of information bill

- Article 10: To meet the public's right to information, all
public institutions have to: (1) keep, store, and provide
information in respect of those areas for which they are
responsible; and (2) release all information to the public with
some exceptions.

- Article 14: The exceptions include information that could
interfere with law enforcement, interfere with property rights,
endanger state security or infringe privacy.

- Article 21: A freedom of information commission to be set up to
ensure compliance with the law

- Article 40: Anyone who fails to comply with a decision of the
freedom of information commission would face a maximum penalty of
five-years imprisonment.

State secrecy bill

- Article 5: State secrets are determined by the state apparatus
and government officials in state institutions, ministries, the
Indonesian Military, state enterprises, and other state bodies.

- Article 12: (1) Authority to designate any document as a state
secret is vested in the heads of state institutions, ministries,
Indonesian Military, state enterprises, and other state bodies;
(2) all such persons may delegate their powers to subordinates.

- Article 18: Anyone who does not comply with Article 12 faces a
maximum penalty of nine-years imprisonment.