'Sriwijaya Post' stops publication
'Sriwijaya Post' stops publication
JAKARTA (JP): Sriwijaya Post, a daily newspaper based in Palembang, South Sumatra, is suspending its publication as of today following a physical clash among its employees in the latest conflict embroiling the newspaper's management.
The daily's acting general manager Hendrowiyono told The Jakarta Post by telephone last night that the management decided to suspend publication for security reasons.
"No one can guarantee the security at the editorial office and therefore everyone is worried about their safety," he said.
The latest clash happened at the newspaper's office on Sunday when more than 30 people, including eight editorial staff members, went on a rampage. They smashed computers, cut off telephone lines and attacked other employees standing on their way.
Police arrested 29 people involved in the rampage. They were released on Tuesday but police promised to continue investigation.
The conflict stemmed from the confusion in the shares of the newspaper. Some of the newspaper's employees were unhappy with the inclusion of "strangers" in the list of shareholders.
It was then fueled by management reshuffle in which the then General Manager Fauzi Achmad was replaced. The reorganization put Fauzi and the then Chief Editor Hendrowiyono at odds.
The conflict burst into the open when Fauzi fired a journalist he said had a past link with an "outlawed organization", a common reference to the Indonesian Communist Party.
Earlier this month, the opposing camps had been involved in a physical clash. Fauzi and Hendrowiyono accused each other of hiring street hoodlums in their bids to force their will.
Hendrowiyono said last night that he hoped the newspaper, the largest in South Sumatra, will reappear in about a week.
PT Sriwijaya Perdana -- the company which publishes the newspaper -- will review the management and find an acceptable solution, he said.
Sunday's violence has been brought to the attention of the Information Ministry in Jakarta. South Sumatra governor Ramli Hasan Basri has threatened to interfere if the conflict drags on. (pan)