"The State Regulation number 40 does not mention anything about Presidential or Ministerial regulations, which means there are no interventions from the government towards the press," Minister of Communication and Informatics Rudiantara stated during the 2017 World Press Freedom Day event in Jakarta on Tuesday.
The government does not interfere with the activities of the press, because the industry, along with its stakeholders, is a self-regulatory organization.
It is hoped that the media would be able to maintain its responsibility in maintaining the sovereignty of Indonesia, despite the absence of intervention from the government.
Rudiantara added that the line that binds journalists is the journalistic code of ethics, adding that the government fully supported the openness of information, which is evident through the State Regulation number 14 of 2008 on the Openness of Public Information.
"If there are government institutions such as the central, provincial, or state-owned enterprises that refuse to release information that should be available according to the Central Information Commission, then they can be reported to the provincial or central Commission," he pointed out.
Additionally, the Chairman of the Indonesian Press Council Yosep Adi Prasetyo reminded that based on the State Regulation number 40 of 1999, anyone who intentionally hinders the work of a journalist faces the threat of being jailed for two years with a maximum fine of Rp500 million.
"The State Regulation number 40 of 1999 clearly states that whoever hinders the work of a journalist in creating news stories faces the possibility of being prosecuted. The law thus protects the work of a journalist," he remarked.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
