Heeding the President's warning, Communications and Information Technology Minister Tifatul Sembiring promised on Friday to revise the draft regulation on multimedia content that has sparked widespread protests.
"I personally take responsibility for this. I will review the draft and scrap it if I find it violates press freedom," Tifatul said in a TV interview.
Tifatul returned from an eight-day European trip on Thursday night and was greeted by a national controversy over the government regulation draft.
He had claimed the draft was made before he assumed his role as minister, so he "knew nothing" about it until the controversy erupted.
Critics say that if the regulation in passed, it would pose a serious threat to freedom of expression at a time when the Internet has become a key source of information.
Over the past week Internet users have posted complaints about the ministry's plan on social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.
Opponents of the ministerial regulation said there were several options other than censorship to curb negative impacts of the Internet.
Margiyono from the Independent Journalists Alliance (AJI) said the government could help set up a multi-stakeholder commission such as the Indonesia Broadcasting Commission (KPI) for TVs and radios.
"The commission members would have to be selected by the parliament," he said.
Margiyono said the problem was not the rules themselves, but rather who held the authority to enforce the rules. Government censorship, such as in China, was more suitable for a non-democratic country, he said.
APJII said the government should set a code of ethics, not devise strict regulations.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in a Cabinet meeting on Thursday that none of his Cabinet ministers could draft regulations without first consulting him. He specifically singled out the multimedia content draft regulation.
Although the President did not specifically mention Tifatul, it was understood that his remarks were addressed to the communications and information technology minister.
Tifatul said the disputed regulation draft was basically aimed at promoting "healthy use" of the Internet, which was in the greater interest.
"The Internet should be used properly and not for negative purposes, such as kidnapping and credit cards fraud," he said.
He also said he was not offended by the President's remarks because it was part of Yudhoyono's job to supervise his ministers.
"The *President's statement* shouldn't be exaggerated. He was reminding all ministers to report and discuss sensitive issues with the public. He didn't specifically name me," he said.
Some observers see Yudhoyono's statement as a warning to the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), of which Tifatul is a member.
The PKS, one of the coalition parties in Yudhoyono's government, is highly critical of the way he handled the Rp 6.76 trillion (US$716 million) Bank Century bailout.
Legislators in the House of Representatives' inquiry team into the bank bailout have angered Yudhoyono with their persistence in seeking to lay the blame for the bailout of Yudhoyono's subordinates.
They are seeking the removal of Vice President Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, who they believe area responsible for issuing the bailout in November 2008 when Boediono was Bank Indonesia governor.
Presidential spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha, however, denied the speculation.
"Don't misinterpret *the President's remarks* as a warning to a certain political party. The President's words are being distorted," Julian was quoted as saying by news portal vivanews.com.
