AJI requests judicial review on election law
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 05/28/2009 2:47 PM
The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) filed a request Tuesday for a judicial review on the Presidential and Vice Presidential Election Law for possible violations of press freedom.
The request is supported by seven media: Tempo magazine, Tempo daily, The Jakarta Post, Jurnal Nasional, 68H radio station, Vivanews.com, and the Voice of Human Rights radio network.
The AJI says several provisions in the law have violated the Press Law by, among others, forbidding any media publication on a presidential campaign during the so-called calm period.
The calm period is three days prior to voting day when all presidential candidates and supporters are forbidden to engage in any type of political campaign. A violation of the election law would result in penalties sanctioned by the Press Council and the Indonesian Broadcasting Commission (KPI).
"The law allows room for censorship and restrictions on reporting during the election's calm period, even to the extent of dismissing media that violate the law," Hendrayana, a legal advisor for the AJI, said Thursday after filing the request to the Constitutional Court.
The AJI’s request for a judicial review faces a serious time constraint, as the election will be held on July 8.
"We realize that we are late in filing for the judicial review, but we will ask the Constitutional Court to make this case a priority," Hendrayana said. (fmb)
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