INDONESIA-MEDIA: Banned Publications Make a Comeback on Internet

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Yuli Ismartono

JAKARTA, Mar 19 1996 (IPS) - Banned publications in Indonesia are making a comeback through the Internet, for the moment safe from the government’s heavy-handed censorship.

“This is a great opportunity for us and we intend to make good use of it by providing our readers with the same high quality reports as in our magazine,” said Bambang Bujono, an editor of the outlawed publication.

‘TEMPO’, once the largest weekly news magazine in Indonesia, was closed down by the government in June 1994 and now reappears as ‘TEMPO Interaktif’ on Internet, the global network of computer users.

The government withdrew TEMPO’s publishing licence following its in-depth report on the controversial purchase of 39 East German used World War II warships by the Department of Research and Technology.

Following the closure, TEMPO filed a class action suit against the government and won, but the government is appealing and the case is currently pending a decision by the Supreme Court.

Since its first publication in 1971, the magazine experienced three government closures and countless warnings for its critical reports.

In its first Internet edition, TEMPO typically led with a hard- hitting story on a politically sensitive government decision to give concessions to the production of TIMOR, a locally-assembled Korean Kia car, that is designated as the ‘national’ car.

The assembly operation is run by President Suharto’s son Hutomo Mandala Putsa, popularly known as Tommy.

Until then, the automative industry in Indonesia was protected by high import tariffs which valued locally-assembled cars with foreign engines, at 300 per cent their factory prices.

Backers of the TIMOR car said the low cost would make it less of a luxury commodity and more affordable for the people, but critics say the bottom line is that domestic manufacturers are being undercut and a bad precedent has been set.

TEMPO was able to publish the story in the absence of laws regulating the Internet. Other banned publications have also appeared in the network, alongside the home pages of regular newspapers and magazines.

Banned political organisations have also found the Internet to be an effective medium to disseminate their messages. For the moment at least, they are safe because the government is unable to censor news carried by the international information network.

“Technologically speaking, we cannot possibly stop the flow, which is why we should start thinking about other ways to control the Internet,” admitted Dewabrata, the Information Department’s director-general for Radio, Television and Film.

Jakarta’s concern over what it perceives to be abuses of the Internet is shared by governments in the neighbouring countries.

At a recent meeting of information ministers of the Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Singapore, the main topic of discussion was the need to police the flow of communication and information through computer networks.

ASEAN groups Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and most recently, Vietnam. Laos and Cambodia have applied for membership in the association while Burma (also known as Myanmar) has also indicated its intent to join.

“Although (Internet) has opened up the world to all, what it offers may not be totally acceptable to us in this part of the world,” said Malaysian Information Minister Mohamed Rahmat in a speech that cited pornography and “all types of writings and graphics, including those that attack people and government”.

Singapore, whose press and media also operate under tight government control, is planning to impose restrictions when it issues licences to Internet service operators under the Singapore Broadcasting Authority.

Indonesian Information Minister Harmoko, who banned TEMPO magazine, has called for the establishment of an ASEAN television channel and an ASEAN web page as counter-measures to the current flood of information in the Internet.

But analysts say short of blocking telephone lines, for the moment there is little that authorities can do to stop the information flow on the Internet where exposure is limited only by the number of computer owners.

In the meantime, TEMPO is going ahead with plans to expand its coverage and other services, such as access to its well-stocked library and data base, a result of more than two decades of information gathering.

“We want to show the world that we are not an underground newspaper making use of the Internet to come out with sensational news. We are a responsible medium, and we are back to provide dependable and objective reports,” said Yusril Djalinus, who heads the TEMPO Internet project.