Libel law still needs change

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 12/27/2006 2:09 PM  |  Opinion

It is very easy to become despondent about the slow pace of legal reform in Indonesia. However, the recent decision of the Supreme Court to suspend Articles 134, 136 and 137 of the Criminal Code, which have been previously used to punish demonstrators, newspaper editors and student activists who were deemed to have impugned the President's ""dignity"", is definitely a step in the right direction.

The Supreme Court's decision is an encouraging sign of growing maturity and self-confidence within the Indonesian political establishment as well as of the realization that ""respect"" and ""dignity"" are accolades that have to be earned rather than being the automatic entitlement of high political office.

Former president Soeharto's enthusiastic use of Articles 134, 136 and 137 to punish anyone who dared to criticize him was simply a reflection of his anachronistic perception of himself as the ""last Javanese sultan"" who ruled over Indonesia with ""divine authority"". Such quaint notions clearly have no place in a modern democratic Indonesia. The President, Vice President and other senior government figures should, of course, receive the same protection that every citizen is entitled to from libelous and slanderous remarks. That protection, though, is properly to be found in civil actions rather than in criminal prosecutions. Accordingly, the next objective in this area should be to decriminalize libel and slander altogether, replacing these ""crimes"" with a clearly defined right to recover damages for loss of reputation caused by libelous or slanderous remarks which are shown to be untrue.

So long as libel and slander remain ""crimes"" in Indonesia, the Criminal Code will continue to be a powerful weapon for unscrupulous public and business figures to intimidate the media and others from reporting on and/or protesting against their activities.

WILLIAM A. SULLIVAN
Jakarta

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