Ismira Lutfia – Media activists on Wednesday came out against the government's plan to merge public broadcasters Televisi Republik Indonesia (TVRI) and Radio Republik Indonesia (RRI) into a single entity, with government officials acting as its advisers.

The activists described the plan as an attempt by the government to acquire more power over the media. They also rejected any attempts to legalize the government's authority to meddle with the two public broadcasters' policies through the drafting of a new government regulation on public broadcasters.

Leo Batubara, deputy chairman of the Press Council, said he supported the idea of pairing up TVRI and RRI as a media organization with an integrated newsroom, but he opposed the idea of merging the two into a single entity, which would be called Radio Televisi Republik Indonesia (RTRI).

"We reject the government's draft regulation that would turn TVRI and RRI into a government mouthpiece," Leo said. "The draft also states that the supervisory board would appoint the board of directors with the approval of the minister [of communications and information technology]."

Media observer Agus Sudibyo said that the loss of TVRI and RRI would be a setback for the two organizations and would not improve their broadcast quality.

"The draft is a threat to the existence of public broadcasters, which people still need [as an alternative] to the domination of private broadcasters," Agus said. He added that the draft showed that the government had failed to understand the role played by public broadcasters.

He said TVRI and RRI "should remain public facilities from which the public can obtain correct and balanced information."

Hariono, TVRI's chief executive, told the Jakarta Globe in September that the planned merger was a rational step. He added that once the right mix was found, the merger of the two public broadcasters would result in financial and bureaucratic efficiencies.