The International
Federation of Journalists (IFJ) is disturbed by reports that Molotov cocktails
were thrown at the Jakarta office of Tempo magazine in Indonesia.
The Alliance of Independent
Journalists (AJI), an IFJ affiliate, said that local media reported two
unidentified men on a motorcycle hurled three Molotov cocktails at the Tempo office in Menteng, South Jakarta, early yesterday morning.
The Jakarta Post said two of the petrol
bombs exploded but the resulting fire was quickly extinguished. One of the
magazine’s security guards said the two suspects threw the bombs about 2.40 am.
The Post noted that the attack followed
a Tempo cover story on alleged suspicious
bank accounts held by several high-ranking police officers.
“The IFJ condemns this attack, which
appears to be an attempt to intimidate Tempo’s
journalists who are well-known guardians of independent and critical
journalism,” IFJ Asia-Pacific
Director Jacqueline Park said.
“The IFJ calls for a full inquiry
into this vicious attack, and assurance that the perpetrators are brought to
justice.”
The Tempo story reported that at least seven high-ranking police
officers were allegedly hoarding billions of rupiah in their bank accounts,
transferred from third parties.
The Jakarta Post reported on June 29 that 10 men - thought to be police
officers - bought 2425 copies of the magazine featuring the story. Another
distributor in Central Jakarta reported that a man bought 1200 copies of the
same issue, while in Bandung, West
Java, 1100 copies were sold before 9am the same day.
For further
information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific
on +612 9333 0919
The IFJ
represents more than 600,000 journalists in 125 countries