'Nothing is final yet': Harmoko on 'Tempo' case
'Nothing is final yet': Harmoko on 'Tempo' case
KEBUMEN, Central Java (JP): Minister of Information Harmoko, whose banning of the Tempo magazine was overturned in a landmark court decision last week, has appointed the attorney general's to appeal the verdict.
"I already signed the power-of-attorney letter," Harmoko told The Jakarta Post here yesterday. "In this case, the government will always respect the court and efforts to uphold the law."
"What we seek is justice and truth, not winning or finding mistakes," Harmoko said, adding that he will abide by whatever ruling the appeal court issues.
Harmoko denied having been hasty or emotional in his decision to appeal. He also refused to say whether he will re-issue the publishing license of Tempo, which he revoked last June, should he lose his appeal.
"Let's not talk about any if's. Let's just wait for the outcome (of the proceedings), and let's all respect the court of justice," he said.
"Nothing is final yet," he added, saying that the Jakarta State Administrate Court's decision to topple his ban on Wednesday has not yet become a "legal final decision".
The court, in an unprecedented ruling, overturned the ban and ordered Harmoko to grant the magazine a new publishing license. The decision was widely hailed by observers, members of the press and human rights activists, who called it a landmark development in Indonesian press freedom.
The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) seized the momentum and proposed that the administrative court's ruling be considered as a basis for a Supreme Court review of the ministry's authority to grant and revoke publishing licenses.
The call for a judicial review has been repeatedly made by various parties in the past. A number of legal experts believe that the ministry's authority to revoke licenses violates the higher Press Law which does not recognize license revocation or publication bans.
Harmoko refused yesterday to comment on the YLBHI's suggestion.
"Let's not talk about it now... it's an entirely different issue," he said. "We're now talking about the administrative court's ruling... we will deal with that first."
He also pledged not to meddle in the court's proceedings.
Harmoko issued a decree in June 1994 revoking the publishing licenses of the newsweeklies Tempo, Editor and DeTik. With the appointment of the attorney general as Harmoko's legal representative, the appeal is expected to be filed at the Jakarta high court soon.
Meanwhile, Abdurrahman Wahid, the controversial leader of the Nahdlatul Ulama Moslem organization, yesterday joined observers in welcoming the court's ruling.
"This is a significant victory for democracy, although by no means does it apply throughout Indonesia," he said. But "it's a contribution by Benjamin for democratization. He will be written down in history as a judge who upheld democracy."
Abdurrahman also said that, in general, Indonesian democratization is still far from satisfying. "There are so many things that have to be improved here."
In a related development, the Central Jakarta district court will convene this morning to issue a preliminary ruling on a civil petition against Harmoko filed by the ex-Tempo employees. (har/swe)