Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar has admitted the need to revise "sensitive" article on defamation in the 2008 Information and Electronic Transactions Law, saying it threatens freedom of expression.
Speaking Tuesday on the sidelines of an event in Jakarta, Patrialis said the article had curtailed the public's freedom to voice an opinion, following with recent charging of two people who did just that.
"This is my personal view," said the minister and National Mandate Party (PAN) politician, as quoted by the Information and Communications Ministry's press division.
"I agree with the demand that the article be struck off. We've experienced this twice – first in the Prita Mulyasari case, and the latest with Luna Maya.
"From the very beginning I wanted the article to be revised because it's very sensitive. People can be easily charged for defamation or libel," he went on. "This certainly doesn't guarantee freedom of expression."
Prita is the Tangerang housewife and mother of two who was dragged to court after sending emails to friends complaining of the poor service she had received from Omni International Hospital.
She lost a civil suit and was ordered to pay the hospital Rp 204 million. Outraged citizens, from school students to street musicians, have rallied in her support by donating money in excess of Rp 800 million.
The hospital later dropped the civil case, but prosecutors insisted on proceeding with a criminal trial, and have sought a six-month jail sentence.
Luna is a local celebrity who lashed out at infotainment reporters through Twitter, calling them lower than prostitutes and murderers. She had apparently been angered by reporters after an incident at a Central Jakarta mall where the daughter of her boyfriend was hit in the head by a reporter's camera.
Luna was reported to the police by the Jakarta office of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI), which represents infotainment workers.
The two women have garnered widespread public support, as evident, among others, in the number of people joining their respective causes on Facebook.
Prita, whose case came to light last year, has garnered more than 130,000 supporters on the social networking site; while Luna, whose case only broke out last week, has garnered 5,500 supporters as of Tuesday.
Luna has also apparently received the backing of the Press Council and the Independent Journalists Alliance, both of which lambasted the PWI for choosing to file charges against Luna under the two defamation articles in the information and electronic transactions law.
In response to Patrialis' statement, Information and Communications Ministry spokesman Gatot S. Dewa Broto said the ministry was "open to the proposal".