'Tempo' commemorates attack as members stand trial
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Journalists, experts, activists and artists gathered on Monday at the Tempo office building on Jl. Proklamasi, Central Jakarta, to commemorate an attack on the weekly by around 200 protesters, who claimed to be from the Artha Graha Group and the Indonesian Young Bulls, a year ago.
Tempo co-founder Goenawan Muhamad called on the press to deliberate strategic measures to deal with such threats.
"The attack against Tempo office was nothing compared to greater threats that other media -- such as Rakyat Merdeka daily -- dealt with, and will deal with in the coming days," he addressed the audience.
Commenting on a string of prosecutions against journalists for publishing stories considered libelous against prominent figures, Goenawan said: "It constitutes efforts to silence the press through legal means."
The Jakarta chapter of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) said that although a year had gone by, the threat to Tempo had not yet receded.
"Trials against Tempo resulted in the prosecution of its journalists and top executives who may face imprisonment," AJI Jakarta chairman Ulin Niam Yusron said.
Tempo was attacked by around 200 protesters, claiming to be security guards from Artha Graha Group owned by well-connected businessman Tomy Winata. The protesters demanded that the weekly retract its article titled 'Is there Tomy in Tenabang?', in its March 3 to March 9 issue. The article suggested that there was a link between Tomy's plan to renovate Tanah Abang textile market and the fire that destroyed it.
Tempo media group has been dealing with seven separate cases against the businessman.
Koran Tempo daily lost against Tomy at the South Jakarta District Court in January and had to pay US$1 million in damages -- which it has yet to pay pending the outcome of its appeal.
Last month, the Central Jakarta District Court rejected the Rp 120 billion (US$14.3 million) civil suit filed by Tomy against Tempo magazine.
On the same day as the anniversary, Tempo chief editor Bambang Harymurti along with journalists Ahmad Taufik and T. Iskandar Ali stood trial against Tomy at the Central Jakarta District Court for violating Article 14(1) of the 1946 Criminal Code. They are accused of deliberately disseminating rumors and publishing a report that could provoke public disorder.
If convicted, they will be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years imprisonment.
Legal expert Loebby Loeqman testified that although Tempo magazine had included Tomy's denial of his move to submit a renovation proposal for the Tanah Abang market before the fire, the weekly was still liable for defamation as it had not ordered the story so that Tomy's statement was prominent.
"Readers could not find Tomy's statement easily and therefore he was considered silent on the issue. Tempo in fact had complied with the basic journalistic principle of coverage of both sides," said Loebby, who in the police dossier had insisted that the article was libelous.
Presiding judge Andriani Nurdin adjourned the trial to March 15 to hear more witnesses.