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Your letters: Press should not take sides
Freedom: A family poses in front of a World Press Freedom banner in Menteng Park, Central Jakarta, on May 3
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Freedom: A family poses in front of a World Press Freedom banner in Menteng Park, Central Jakarta, on May 3. Press Council chairman Bagir Manan has called on the press to side with the public for the sake of democracy.(JP/AWO) (JP/AWO)
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span class="inline inline-center">Freedom: A family poses in front of a World Press Freedom banner in Menteng Park, Central Jakarta, on May 3. Press Council chairman Bagir Manan has called on the press to side with the public for the sake of democracy.(JP/AWO)
Press Council chairman Bagir Manan said that 'in a democracy the press should side with the public, not with political powers.' The press should side with the truth as it sees it, whether it reflects public opinion or not.
Democracy does not mean that the public is always right and that government must be directed by public opinion. The civil rights movement in the US gave ample evidence that what the public wanted was not constitutional and that it was the government's role to lead, not follow.
The essence of democracy is constructive interaction between the public and the government, but the government must be wise enough to make tough decisions, even without public support. Merely following public opinion is mob rule and an abdication on the part of the government.
John M. Miller
Jakarta
