RI bars Aussie reporter for undisclosed reasons

Annastasya Emmannuelle, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Indonesia showed signs of regressing into the dark days of curtailing press freedom when it was revealed that the government, without providing sufficient reason, refused to extend a journalist visa for senior Australian correspondent Lindsay Murdoch.

Murdoch, correspondent for Australian newspapers The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, was denied a visa extension despite having worked here for the last three years.

He left at the expiration of his visa on March 10. While he cannot work as a journalists here, Murdoch has not been banned and has since returned on a business visa.

No official reason was given by the government, raising speculation that it was prompted by critical news reports.

It ominously reminded many of the days, not so long ago, when the government kept an iron clasp on the media.

Foreign ministry deputy spokesman Wahid Supriyadi defended the decision and underscored the government's commitment to "always uphold press freedom in the country".

"The foreign ministry has its own considerations for not extending his visa," Wahid told The Jakarta Post. "It's common policy for a country to decline a visa application without having to provide an explanation".

He also brushed off speculation that the government was afraid of media criticism.

"The government is criticized by the media -- foreign and local -- almost every day. That is not a problem to us ... but we believe it's necessary for journalists to maintain journalism ethics," he said without elaborating.

But the refusal to provide an explanation and the fact it is the first incident since the fall of president Soeharto in 1998, speaks volumes on the sensitivity of the current administration.

Few thought that the government would be so extreme when Murdoch's visa first expired on Dec. 10 and extended for three months.

Murdoch, 48, is no newcomer to Indonesia.

Some of his more critical articles include an incident involving the death of a baby in Aceh allegedly at the hands of soldiers, and a story about a UN effort to reunite East Timorese children with their families after having been from refugee camps and put in orphanages.

A joint statement received here on Sunday from The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald claimed that in discussions with Indonesian officials it was clear that the decision was taken because of Murdoch's "authoritative reporting".

The two dailies also rejected Jakarta's offer to nominate an alternative correspondent: "We respectfully reject that any government can seek to decide whether any of our journalists is acceptable for the purposes of reporting from a foreign country."

Murdoch said could not understand why the decision was taken. "None of my reports were unbalanced, unfair or inaccurate," Murdoch said. "But as a guest of the country I have been shown the door and will leave politely".

More rebuke came from the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents' Club who said in a statement on Sunday that the move contradicted the government's pledge not to restrict freedom of expression.

Indonesian Press Council chairman Atmakusumah Astraatmadja if there are reports regarded as bias or inaccurate, the government who must counter or clarify them.

"Banning a journalist is simply not the way."