Twisted media reports deplored

BOGOR, West Java (JP): The civil emergency administrator in Maluku, Governor Saleh Latuconsina, has urged the National Press Council to help the media in "telling the truth and being objective in reporting the Maluku case".

"Since the ministry of information no longer exists, we would like to ask the National Press Council to help us deal with the twisted media reporting on Maluku, he told a session with the press council's chairman Atmakusumah Asraatmadja here late on Monday.

"Many national media have run stories that are completely at odds with the true facts and they have a tendency to exploit incidents which could arouse anger in both the Muslim and Christian camps," he said.

Monday's session was part of a meeting titled Journalism in Conflict organized by the British Council, National Press Board and Independent Journalists' Alliance (AJI).

"It's hard to keep things under control in Maluku with so many misleading reports," the governor complained.

Latuconsina further singled out a Jakarta-based daily which in several of its editions had employed bombastic titles and partial reporting.

Atmakusumah shared Latuconsina view, saying that he had "softly criticized the daily for its writing".

"Besides that, I have also noticed several local (Maluku) media carrying provocative reports," Atmakusumah said.

He further said that a new system for dealing with media bias needed to be set in place.

"The governor could fax copies of media reports that are considered provocative to the press council so as to help us deal with the problem," Atmakusmah added. (edt/49)