(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has urged the Indonesian authorities to respect press freedom in the province of Aceh. On 21 May 2003, the army banned the news media from reporting statements by rebels of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). The move follows the declaration of a state of emergency in the province on 19 May. Journalists […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has urged the Indonesian authorities to respect press freedom in the province of Aceh. On 21 May 2003, the army banned the news media from reporting statements by rebels of the Free Aceh Movement (GAM). The move follows the declaration of a state of emergency in the province on 19 May. Journalists covering the fighting in Aceh are now also required to obtain accreditation from the military.
“As long as journalists report statements that are not calls for violence or murder, they are simply respecting their fellow citizens’ basic right to be informed,” RSF Secretary-General Robert Ménard noted in a letter to Indonesian Defence and Security Minister Juwono Sudarsono. “We ask you to ensure that journalists can continue to work normally in this region, despite the state of emergency,” he added.
The restrictions on the press in Aceh province (located at the northern tip of Sumatra Island) were announced on 21 May by General Endang Suwarya, the officer in charge of implementing martial law in Aceh. Citing legislation governing states of emergency, Suwarya banned journalists from quoting GAM spokespersons for the duration of the state of emergency.
The general said Indonesia’s interests must be paramount in all press coverage. “I demand that all news reports support the nationalist spirit. The interests of the unitary state must come first. No credibility may be accorded to the GAM’s statements, which constantly twist the facts,” Suwarya said.
Several news organisations have already encountered problems since the restrictions were announced. Soldiers threatened reporters from the privately-owned television station Metro TV with expulsion from the province because they filmed a group of persons with GAM logos on their clothes. The people concerned were helping to put out a fire at one of the many schools that have been torched since the start of the army’s offensive. The daily newspaper “Serambi Indonesia” also received a strong reprimand for alleged bias in favour of the separatists in its coverage of the military operations.
