16 August 2006
MOBS, THUGS POSE BIGGEST THREATS TO PRESS FREEDOM
Mob violence and thuggery were the leading causes of violence against the Indonesian press in 2005, a report by the Alliance for Independent Journalists (Aliansi Jurnalis Independen, AJI) has found.
The organisation says close to one third of attacks on the press were committed by mobs and thugs last year. It recorded 23 such cases out of a total of 64 between August 2005 and August 2006. During that period, one journalist was murdered, one abducted, one imprisoned and 34 assaulted. Twelve journalists faced intimidation and seven were sued in court.
The second leading "enemy of the press" was government officials, with 14 cases of attacks, followed by the police with eight cases.
AJI also found that the capital, Jakarta, was the most dangerous place in the country for journalists in 2005, with 13 cases of violence recorded, followed by East Java and Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam with eight cases each.
AJI's findings were released on 10 August 2006 to mark the press freedom group's 12th anniversary. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ), with whom AJI is affiliated, expressed concern about the violence against journalists, and urged the Indonesian government to take action to "ensure these assaults on press freedom no longer continue and those responsible for these cowardly attacks are held accountable."
Visit these links:
- AJI: http://ajiindonesia.org/
- SEAPA: http://www.seapabkk.org/
- IFJ: http://www.ifj.org/default.asp?Index=4120&Language=EN
- Freedom House Report on Indonesia: http://www.freedomhouse.org/template.cfm?page=16&year=2005&country=6755
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