Press Law should be used in 'Tempo' case: Legal expert

Press Law should be used in 'Tempo' case: Legal expert

Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A legal expert testifying at the Central Jakarta District Court
on Monday in the libel suit filed against Tempo journalists by
businessman Tomy Winata, said the case should be prosecuted under
the Press Law rather than the Criminal Code.

"It was a legal entity that published the article, so Law No.
40/1999 on the press should be used to prosecute the case instead
of the Criminal Code, which is for regulating the acts of
individuals," said Rudi Satrio, a criminal code expert from the
University of Indonesia's School of Law.

Legal experts and media people have repeatedly demanded that
the Press Law, not the Criminal Code, be used to prosecute media-
related cases.

Tempo chief editor Bambang Harymurti and journalists Ahmad
Taufik and T. Iskandar Ali are accused of provoking public
disorder and defaming Tomy in an article titled Is Tomy in
Tenabang?, which was published in a March 2003 edition of the
weekly magazine. The article insinuated that the businessman was
behind the fire that razed the Tanah Abang textile market on Feb.
19, 2003.

If found guilty, the three defendants could face a maximum of
10 years in prison under Article 14(1) of the Criminal Code on
provoking disorder, and a maximum of four years under articles
310 and 311 of the Criminal Code on defamation.

Previous media-related cases -- President Megawati
Soekarnoputri and House of Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung
against the editors of Rakyat Merdeka daily in separate cases,
and Tomy Winata against Koran Tempo in a civil suit -- were all
prosecuted under the Criminal Code. The verdict in all of these
cases went against the newspapers.

Rudi, who was testifying for the prosecution, suggested that
the trial refer to Article 5(1) of the Press Law, which requires
the press to comply with religious norms, ethical norms and the
presumption of innocence in conveying information and opinions to
the public in any published or broadcast materials.

While stating that Tempo did not violate any religious norms,
and refusing to comment on ethical matters because that was not
his area of expertise, Rudi said Tempo could have violated the
presumption of innocence in the article, though he could not
point out exactly where the violation occurred when questioned by
defense lawyers.

"I think Tempo should have used initials in its article,
rather than a full name," he said.

When the defense asked for his opinion on Article 50 of the
Criminal Code, which provides protection against criminal charges
for anyone carrying out their work as mandated by the law, Rudi
said that article was valid only if the work was performed with
respect to other laws as well.

He also said that while it was the panel of judges' right to
consider a legal entity as an individual, he reiterated his
suggestion that the case be settled according to the Press Law.

Presiding judge Andriani Nurdin adjourned the trial until Feb.
16, at which time the court will hear from additional legal
experts.