Press urged to support judicial objectivity
Press urged to support judicial objectivity
JAKARTA (JP): Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman said yesterday that "trial by the press" should be avoided because it could endanger judicial independence.
"The press should refrain from carrying news stories on crime in such a way as to disrespect the principle of the presumption of innocence, because this could influence the objectivity of the court," Oetojo told reporters after a meeting with the House of Representatives Legal Commission.
"On the other hand, a judge, in reading the stories carried by the media, should be aware that he is being tested on his independence and responsibility to God Almighty," he added.
Oetojo said that, with a lack of respect for the principle of the presumption of innocence, the news media -- both printed and electronic -- have a tendency to mix news and opinion.
"This can provoke people's anger through the creation of negative public opinion," he said.
Oetojo said he regretted the fact that public wrath, caused by the way the media has printed or broadcast reports on criminal cases, had led to riots recently.
"The press has a big role to play in the efforts to build a positive attitude towards criminal cases -- by trying not to make their own judgments until the court has ruled on the case in hand," he said.
Sjamsul Basrie, chief of the Honorary Council of the Indonesian Journalist Association, told The Jakarta Post yesterday that he had sent many warning letters to media organizations asking them to be more careful in printing or broadcasting crime stories so as to avoid rousing public anger.
Citing examples, Sjamsul said that the media had printed and broadcast too-detailed reports on the recent gang rape and robbery of a village family in Bekasi, 30 kilometers south-east of here, and the brutal murder of a mother and three of her children in East Jakarta. For example, the reports had mentioned the ethnicity and creed of the prime murder suspect in the latter case, he said.
This had stirred up public outrage, resulting in the attack on the lawyers representing the suspects, said Sjamsul, who is also chief editor of Suara Karya daily.
Conscience
He said that there are no legal sanctions against trial by the press, but added that "as civilized people, editors should consult their conscience."
"We have common sense in the journalists' code of ethics," he said.
Meanwhile, a legislator of the Indonesian Democratic Party, V.B. da Costa, said that to strictly curb the tendency to violate the principle of the presumption of innocence on the part of news media, Indonesia is in dire need of regulations on adherence to the principle.
He said that the way in which the media have reported on the two recent cases has not only tarnished the good name of the suspects but also those of their families.
Rustandi, a legislator from the Armed Forces faction in the House of Representatives, told the Post that the press' printing of good stories should not be done at the cost of sacrificing people's basic rights.
A public relations officer of ANteve television told the Post by telephone yesterday that the private TV network has a policy of broadcasting every event as both information and entertainment in order to make it interesting for viewers.
The officer, Soraya Perucha, said that she did not mind broadcasting details of a criminal case because "that's the way it happens."
"And so far the TV station has never been criticized by the public or reprimanded by the authorities," she added. (03)