In the early morning of 27 October 1996, Indonesian police arrested Andi Syahputra, a media worker of a leading Indonesian underground newspaper, charging him with distributing materials that defame President Suharto. Family sources said Syahputra, 31, was involved in a minor traffic irregularity when police stopped and tried to ticket him in the Panglima Polim […]
In the early morning of 27 October 1996, Indonesian police
arrested Andi Syahputra, a media worker of a leading Indonesian
underground newspaper, charging him with distributing materials
that defame President Suharto.
Family sources said Syahputra, 31, was involved in a minor traffic
irregularity when police stopped and tried to ticket him in the
Panglima Polim area in southern Jakarta. However, police changed
their minds and took him to the South Jakarta police precinct
after finding more than 300 hundreds copies of the “Suara
Independen” underground newspaper inside his van. Two lawyers from
a legal aid organization and some members accompanied Syahputra
during questioning in the police station. “Seven officers later in
the afternoon raided our house and confiscated films, books and
other materials,” said wife Yuni, in her residence in Pasar Nangka
in northern Jakarta.
Jakarta police were not available for comment.
Background Information
Indonesia has seen a boom of unlicensed newspapers following the
heightened censorship on its media and the closure of three news
weeklies in 1994. The unlicensed media usually publish reports
that are not covered by the mainstream newspapers.
The “Suara Independen” is published by the Society of Indonesian
Alternative Media (MIPPA), which is officially based in Melbourne,
Australia. But, it is widely known in Indonesia that the hard-
hitting magazine is published from Jakarta.
