Women's paper launched amid hopes, skepticism

JAKARTA (JP): High hopes and skepticism greeted the introduction of a special women's newspaper called Koran Perempuan, the first of its kind here.

Launched on Thursday in a discussion on the role of the media in empowering women, participants hoped the daily would voice the perspectives of women in its reports, while executives assured it would not "exploit women".

The edition at the launch was a demonstration copy, with the first issue coming out next week, an executive said.

A businesswoman, however, questioned the income of the newspaper, saying she had trouble convincing colleagues to place advertisements in the publication.

"A colleague said they would be better off placing advertisements in publications with Desy (Ratnasari, a newly divorced celebrity) on their covers," Meilani Suharli, chairwoman of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Association of Businesswomen.

A reporter said the paper made little sense in terms of its targeted readership.

"We need men reading about things like injustice toward women," she told The Jakarta Post.

The newspaper targets 80 percent of women and 20 percent of men, according to its brochure, but gives no estimated figures.

Reinhard S., the business consultant of the paper's publisher, the Koran Indonesia Foundation, told the forum that proposals for the newspaper had gained an unexpected response.

"When I was marketing a city afternoon paper we never got this many advertisements," he said. "We've got Rp 45 million in revenue from initial ads and that's not bad."

Executives declined to mention the amount of capital involved in the venture, saying there was "considerable help" from acquaintances. The paper is priced at Rp 1,500.

Agents have approached the newspaper's office on Jl. Proklamasi, Central Jakarta, saying there was readership potential, Reinhard said.

Public shares of Rp 1,000 are being offered. Minimum purchases are Rp 500,000 for 5,000 shares.

Several executives of the newspaper are former reporters of the Suara Pembaruan afternoon daily.

One of them, the new daily's chief editor, Tuti Gintini, said in the demo version's editorial that one reason to set up the paper had been "the awareness that no one except women themselves should be expected to fight for women's interests."

State Minister of the Empowerment of Women Khofifah Indar Parawansa, a speaker at the forum, urged the media to support efforts toward emancipation along with continuing to support efforts for democracy in general.

She stressed that the media should positively use the "current high trust in the media", citing mass actions triggered by media content, by without any further clarification.

The minister said she had met media executives at the beginning of her term, "but on issues of women they said the main consideration was business."

Other speakers included philosopher Tommy F. Awuy and activist of the Kalyanamitra women's organization Myra S. Diarsi. (anr)