The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), in expressing alarm about the potential negative impact of Indonesia’s 2008 Information and Electronic Transactions Law on freedom of expression.
A regional seminar on August 13, organised by AJI under the theme Online Defamation and Freedom of Expression in South-East Asia, focused on the implications of the Indonesian law for increased risk of criminal defamation charges against journalists for online content. The law was notionally introduced to regulate online business transactions.
Lawyer Jim Nolan, representing the IFJ at the seminar, said the law could be used as a tool for political censorship.
“This has happened in authoritarian countries where governments have made online defamation laws because they were worried about the free political discussions on the Internet,” Nolan said.
Nolan also expressed concern at the possibility that any journalist whose work is judged defamatory by a court could be imprisoned for one year. If the same report appeared online, an additional six-year sentence could be imposed under the Information and Electronic Transactions Law.
Defamation and libel charges against media workers in Indonesia can be filed under Articles 311 and 317 of the Criminal Code as well as the civil Press Law.
Criminal defamation and libel cases continue to be filed despite a 2005 Supreme Court decision to set jurisprudence of the Press Law for the settlement of all media disputes.
AJI has campaigned strongly for complaints against the media to be dealt with under the Press Law, rather than the Criminal Code.
“The Information and Electronic Transactions Law may be intended to protect online banking transactions, but it contains major flaws that risk impeding the much needed shift away from criminalisation of defamation and libel in Indonesia,” IFJ Asia-Pacific Director Jacqueline Park said.
“Indonesia’s Government must take every action to remove regulatory action against the media from its criminal system.”
The IFJ joins AJI in calling for an immediate review of the potential detrimental effect of the Information and Electronic Transactions Law on Indonesia’s press freedom status.
For further information contact IFJ Asia-Pacific on +612 9333 0919
The IFJ represents over 600,000 journalists in 120 countries worldwide