Observers condemn action of Banser

JAKARTA (JP): Media organizations and observers condemned on Sunday the exaggerated action of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) civilian guards in Surabaya, who rallied at and occupied the Jawa Pos daily's offices for reporting alleged corruption practices by executives of the country's largest Muslim organization.

The occupation caused the daily to forego its Sunday edition, resulting in a total loss of Rp 1 billion, its managing editor, Arief Affandi, said.

The civilian guards, popularly called Banser, were annoyed by a special report entitled "PKB feels the heat, NU sets up a clarification team" in the Saturday edition of one of the country's leading dailies.

In the report, the newspaper told of rumors about an alleged transfer of Rp 35 billion (US$4.37 million) in funds from the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) to a non-governmental organization (NGO) linked to Hasyim Wahid, the brother of President Abdurrahman Wahid, a former NU chairman and founder of the National Awakening Party (PKB).

Quoting Tempo magazine, the daily mistakenly named NU chairman Hasyim Muzadi. The paper reported that State Minister of Investment and State Enterprises Development Rozy Munir, who is also an NU executive, received bribes amounting to Rp 10 billion from state company officials and a Volvo sedan.

In his capacity as chairman of Bulog, deputy chief of Bulog Sapuan, who later in February ordered the agency to make the fund transfer, confirmed the deal but asserted that the transaction was a loan fully secured by property.

He declined to disclose name of the borrower but reasserted that the fund was transferred as a loan and the deal had nothing to do with his ambition to be appointed Bulog chief.

President Abdurrahman, or Gus Dur as he is also known, categorically denied the report on Saturday.

After a meeting with Banser executives on Sunday evening, the daily's management agreed to apologize by running a front-page notice for a week and a story to rectify the controversial report.

Arief said Jawa Pos would also meet the protesters' demand to build a mosque, but not for Rp 35 billion as previously demanded.

The Independent Journalist Alliance (AJI), Media Consumer Institute (LKM), Surabaya Legal Aid Institute (LBH) and Surabaya Women's Advocacy Forum condemned the use of force by Banser activists.

"We demand that NU executives apologize to the public and media consumers for demonstrating a culture of violence," the four organizations said in a joint statement on Sunday.

"The move is a crime against humanity, especially the freedom of the press and public's right to access of information ," the statement said, as quoted by Antara.

It such conduct would encourage militarism and halt the democratization process.

The organizations called all parties, including sources, media organizations and consumers, who are affected by the media reports, to proportionally respond through legal means and the right to reply, which are common in journalism.

Arief regretted the incident, which he said could serve as a precedent for further uses of mob threats to press freedom.

"We decided not to publish the Sunday edition since we technically and psychologically could not work that night," Arief told The Jakarta Post.

He said dozens of Banser members had occupied the daily's office since Saturday afternoon, switching off the reporters' computers and disconnecting telephone lines.

He said that up to midnight on Saturday, the daily's editorial team was only able to complete six of the planned 24 pages for the Sunday edition.

According to Arief, the daily's reports over NU were so far complied with the principles of impartiality and coverage of both sides.

Communications professor Andi Muis regretted the decision of Jawa Pos to succumb to the protesters' demands.

"It's too much. It could be a bad precedent, where is the pride of the daily?," Muis told the Post on Sunday.

He called on media and related organizations to set up a joint solidarity reaction for the daily.

He condemned Banser for violating human rights, saying that the move could threaten the profession of journalism.

"It's like under the New Order regime. It's like a ban," Muis from the Makassar-based Hasanuddin University said, referring to the administration of former president Soeharto.

He said that while under Soeharto, the ban was imposed by the state, this time around it is forced by mass organizations.

Muis called on the public who suffered damages inflicted by the media to take legal action.

Meanwhile, NU's East Java chapter chairman Ali Maschan Musa regretted the civilian guards' move although he said he could understand the protesters' feelings.

"The move was lamentable. But it could be understood," Ali said on Sunday.

He claimed NU's chairman Hasyim Muzadi only asked the daily to apologize, saying that Tempo had also apologized for it's similar report.

East Java is a stronghold of NU.

In Makassar, South Sulawesi, AJI's local chapter and the Journalists Joint Forum (Forbes) also condemned Banser on Sunday for using the manner of hoodlums to pressure the daily.

"AJI's view is that NU followers are undemocratic. They should take legal action if they thought the newspaper slandered them," AJI's Nasru Alam Aziz said.

"Gus Dur should be responsible for the shameful incident," Forbes' spokesman Ma'ruf Ibrahim added. (27/nur/jun)