Jakarta – Journalists continued to work under grave threat of violence in 2010 with four journalists reportedly murdered and two media outlet offices assaulted this year.
The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) said in its year-end statement Tuesday that the number of cases of violence against journalists nationwide increased from 37 in 2009 to 47 this year.
The group, which was established during the authoritarian rule of Soeharto, said that the cases included those in which journalists were murdered or died mysteriously.
The latest case took place on Dec. 17 when the editor-in-chief of Pelangi Melaku tabloid in Maluku, Alfred Mirulewan, was found dead with wounds on his body. He had been involved in investigative coverage of allegations of illegal fuel storage in the province.
AJI reported that at least 15 journalists were physically assaulted this year and two media offices were attacked by unknown assailants.
AJI chairman Nezar Patria said the group was concerned over the rising violence, saying that the situation might not get better in the coming years should the police fail to handle these cases seriously.
"From all these years of advocacy and out of these many cases, only the murder case of the daily newspaper Radar Bali reporter, Anak Agung Prabangsa, was provided a serious investigation and has been brought to court," Nezar told reporters.
The murder of Anak Agung prompted the international non-government organization, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), to place Indonesia on a list of 14 countries where journalists were thought to be frequently in danger.
AJI also highlighted the soaring number or media workers being laid off by their employers.
It said about 500 media workers were dismissed in the first semester of this year. This figure increased by almost five times from 100 journalists sacked between November 2008 and April 2009.
"Our findings revealed that these media workers were dismissed because they strived to set up or empower unions in their efforts to counter vague working contracts and [improve] welfare," AJI union advocacy coordinator Winuranto Adhi said.
Many companies in regions throughout the country were still paying their journalists under the minimum salary set by each local administration, he added.
The group said low wages often led to journalists violating their own code of ethics.
In November, some members of the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) Journalist Forum were accused of trying to extort PT Krakatau Steel (KS) management and its underwriters in the company's recent initial public offering (IPO). The forum denied the allegations, but several journalists linked to the scandal resigned or were dismissed after the Press Council probed the case.
AJI also noted another failing of the press in 2010. AJI coordinator on woman issues Rach Alida Bahaweres said that journalists needed to be more cautious in covering and providing news on women's and children's issues.
Her research conducted from July to September on seven national daily newspapers showed that the names of victims of sexual abuse were not sufficiently camouflaged as required by the journalistic code of ethics. (rch)