Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – Civil society groups have warned the government against including provisions dealing with defamation in the revised draft of the Criminal Code, saying the move would violate the amended 1945 Constitution.
The government team's inclusion of stronger defamation provisions in the draft showed officials still wanted such rules in place to protect themselves from criticism and to stifle freedom of expression, the groups claimed.
Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers) director Hendrayana said the inclusion of these articles ran counter to Article 28(e) of the Constitution on freedom of expression and Article 28(f) on freedom to obtain and distribute information, as well as Article 19 on civil and political rights in the 1948 Universal Human Rights Declaration.
"Including provisions on defamation in the Criminal Code is a legacy from the New Order era, which sought to shut down criticism and protect the regime. We must stop criminalizing people for expressing their opinions," he told a joint news briefing Friday.
A study conducted by LBH Pers shows defamation has been dropped from the criminal codes of most countries and is now covered only in civil law, Hendrayana said.
Anggara, a lawyer with LBH Pers, said the push for including defamation in the Criminal Code in Indonesia was weakened after the Constitutional Court scrapped the articles against defaming the president.
"So it is no longer relevant to include defamation in the Criminal Code. People who feel offended or insulted can still file a civil lawsuit for material compensation for damages," he said.
Abdul Manan of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) expressed his organization's support for scrapping articles that criminalize defamation. "We hope no more journalists will be jailed for defamation charges," he said.
The Constitutional Court is hearing a request from two journalists to review four articles in the Criminal Code that they claim can be used to silence the press.
The two journalists, Risang Bima Wijaya and Bersihar Lubis – who both received prison sentences for defamation – have petitioned the court to review Articles 207, 310(1,2), 311(1) and 316 of the Criminal Code. Under Articles 310(1,2) and 311(1), those found guilty of defamation or libel face jail terms of up to four years.
The petitioners said the court should also review Articles 207 and 316 because they provided "special treatment and protection" to state officials and could harm freedom of expression.
"We ask the court to remove the jail sentences from these articles, as the penalties have harmed the petitioners' constitutional right to freedom of expression," said Anggara, who is also acting for the two journalists.
He said the court would resume the trial next week to hear from expert witnesses.
Risang, a journalist with Radar Jogja newspaper, is serving a six-month jail term after the Sleman District Court convicted him earlier this month for insulting PT Kedaulatan Rakyat director Sumadi M. Wonohito in an article on sexual harassment.
Bersihar, a columnist with daily newspaper Koran Tempo, was given a suspended one-month prison term by the Depok District Court for his opinion article criticizing the Attorney General's Office for its decision to ban a history textbook.