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AKARTA: The court trial of two British journalists for allegedly filming a documentary about piracy in the Malacca Strait has set a very bad precedent for press freedom, their lawyer said.

'€œIt is in conflict with President [Joko] Jokowi [Widodo'€™s] policy of giving foreign journalists more access,'€ Todung Mulya Lubis, the lawyer of the two journalists, said on Friday.

Neil Bonner, 32, and Rebecca Prosser, 31, appeared at their second hearing on Thursday at the Batam District Court in Riau Islands, accused of having worked on the film while only on tourist visas, Todung said.

'€œI hope the court will give a jail term only the length of their detention period so far, so that they can be deported,'€ he said, adding that prosecutors had requested that the pair receive five years behind bars.

According to Todung, foreign journalists who work without journalism visas should be simply deported instead of being brought before the court.

The two UK citizens are charged with Article 112 of Law No. 6/2011 on immigration, which carries a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment and a Rp 500 million (US$35,000) fine.

Todung was also concerned about the use of handcuffs and prison uniforms for his clients during the trial, noting that the treatment was not reasonable given his client'€™s offenses.

'€œWhat they did was merely an administrative violation. This case will cast a dark image over the freedom of the press message spread by Jokowi,'€ he added.