West Java Correctional Directorate and PWI Join Forces to Strengthen Public Communication
BANDUNG — Yudi Suseno, head of the West Java regional office of the Directorate General of Corrections, visited the West Java branch of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) to strengthen cooperation in communicating information to the public.
The collaboration is considered important to ensure the public receives a complete account of developments in the correctional system.
Yudi said communication and cooperation with the press are essential to building public understanding of the duties and functions of correctional services. The partnership is expected to ensure information about activities in correctional institutions is conveyed accurately, impartially and in accordance with the facts.
Cooperation with journalists’ organisations is also important in helping correctional officials identify journalists carrying out reporting duties. This allows staff to verify that people visiting their offices or correctional facilities to report are genuine journalists working professionally.
Tantan Sulthon, chair of PWI West Java, said cooperation between the association and the Directorate General of Corrections could foster a mutually supportive relationship. Good communication between government institutions and the media, he said, is needed to promote public access to information.
“We have around 1,000 journalists across cities and regencies. We are ready to work together,” Tantan said.
He expressed hope that the partnership would strengthen communication between correctional officials and journalists in various regions, enabling information about prison activities to be conveyed to the public in a balanced manner.
Meanwhile, Sandy Ferdiana, secretary-general of PWI West Java, said a comprehensive understanding of an issue was key to helping the public know the reality on the ground.
Sandy said complete and balanced information would help the public understand events in the correctional system. PWI is therefore ready to support public communication through professional journalism.
He hoped communication between PWI West Java and the regional Directorate General of Corrections would provide a forum for coordinating the release of information and clarifying issues circulating among the public.
The partnership is expected to make relations between correctional institutions and the media more open, allowing the public to obtain clear, accurate and balanced information about developments in West Java’s correctional system.