Susilo to appoint media liaison: Aide

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Amid efforts to limit the movement of journalists covering his activities, president-elect Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is planning to appoint a spokesperson and organize regular media briefings, according to an aide.

Susilo's media coordinator M. Lutfi said on Sunday the next administration would ensure that media interests were addressed.

"There is a plan to appoint a spokesperson and hold regular media briefings for Merdeka Palace reporters," Lutfi told The Jakarta Post.

"Aside from that, the president himself will actively handle important and substantial issues. Rest assured that the media will not be left out," he said.

Rumors have been circulating among reporters that Susilo, who will be sworn in on Oct. 20, would introduce some changes in media coverage for security reasons.

It has been reported that, as Susilo has decided to reside at Merdeka Palace, he sought to restrict access to journalists on the presidential beat.

Instead, reporters would be assigned to a single press room to which they would be escorted whenever the president, government officials or state guests held a media briefing.

Journalists had their first taste of the new arrangement last week, when outgoing President Megawati Soekarnoputri used the new presidential office at the center of the Palace for the first time.

Reporters were quickly escorted away from the new office and asked to stay in the press room some 300 meters from the office.

Palace sources said the new arrangement aimed to prevent journalists from holding doorstop interviews with Cabinet members and official guests, which had become common practice since former president B.J. Habibie took over the national leadership in 1998.

The sources also said a certain dress code would be imposed on all journalists covering Susilo's activities.

Meanwhile, communication experts urged Susilo to maintain an open relationship with the press, as restricting media movement would only create a negative impression about his administration.

"State officials must develop awareness to see the media as their partners," Wimar Witoelar told the Post over the weekend.

He said appointing a presidential spokesperson was not the only way to manage communication between the President and the media.

"The first thing is that the president himself has to remain communicative with the people through the media," said Wimar, a former spokesman to ex-president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid.

Another communication expert, Efendi Ghazali, said many alternatives existed for the President to balance security with the need to communicate openly with the public through the media.

"In countries like the United States, they are familiar with weekly radio talks from the President. I think such regular encounters with the media are necessary," he told the Post.