(AJI/IFEX) – On Wednesday 8 September 1999, crew of Surya Citra Televisi (SCTV), an Indonesian private TV station, were intimidated by an intelligence agent carrying a large knife. The agent was thought to be a journalist for Antara, the Indonesian official news agency. But just as Gunawan, the SCTV cameraman, and his executive editor, Albert […]
(AJI/IFEX) – On Wednesday 8 September 1999, crew of Surya Citra Televisi
(SCTV), an Indonesian private TV station, were intimidated by an
intelligence agent carrying a large knife. The agent was thought to be a
journalist for Antara, the Indonesian official news agency. But just as
Gunawan, the SCTV cameraman, and his executive editor, Albert Kuhon, had
finished shooting the burning of Bank BNI and other buildings in Dili by
militias with the army’s backing, the supposed “Antara journalist” came
after them with a badik, a traditional large knife, and forced them to hand
over the videocassette in their camera. The intelligence agent then threw
the videocassette to the ground and destroyed it.
It is known that police and military intelligence agents work with press
cards from Antara and other official media, or media which are known to be
supporters of the government or the military.
