Jakarta – A law think tank wants to protect freedom of speech by scrapping articles in several laws that provide prison terms for defamation.
The Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) released a study conducted between 2001 and 2012 that said government officials and businesses had abused Article 310 of the Criminal Code on defamation to imprison critics, protestors and irate customers.
The article stipulates that anyone convicted of deliberately making or distributing libellous or slanderous statements can be sentenced to nine months' imprisonment.
Adiani Viviana, the executive secretary of ICJR, said the threat of a prison sentence had had a chilling effect on citizens who wanted to speak out against the government.
"It suppresses freedom of speech. Many countries are aware of this threat and have scrapped jail term from their defamation laws. Therefore, it is irrelevant for us to keep the article," she said during a press conference in Jakarta.
According to Sufriadi Pinim, an ICJR researcher, Article 310 was frequently invoked by government officials to put protesters behind bars. The survey also said that 63 of 275 criminal defamation cases settled between 2001 and 2012 were filed by government officials. Businesses filed 22 cases.
"The plaintiffs range from low-ranking civil servants to lawmakers. Most of them were regents or mayors. These seem to have much to do with regional politics," he said. Sufriadi said that most of the defendants in the defamation cases were members of local communities who criticized local governments.
The ICJR also said that the government and the House of Representatives should amend four other laws with defamation provisions: the 2002 Broadcasting Law, the 2004 Regional Administration Law, the 2008 Information and Electronic Transaction (ITE) Law and the 2012 Election Law.
"The laws overlap with the Criminal Code. The laws contain vague articles that can be loosely interpreted to favor certain parties," she said. The ITE Law, in particular, could be easily used to curb freedom of the press and free speech.
In 2009, Prita Mulyasari, a housewife, was taken to court for writing an email to friends complaining about the treatment she received at Omni Hospital in Tangerang.
Prita was charged under Article 27 of the ITE Law, which provides for a maximum penalty of six years' imprisonment for defamation. Following a lengthy legal process that saw an immense show of public support for Prita, she was acquitted by Supreme Court.
Adinia said that the Supreme Court has been progressive, annulling a large number of prison terms in defamation case. Only 75 of 126 custodial sentences issued in defamation cases have withstood appeal, according to the ICJR. (yps)