Makassar, South Sulawesi (ANTARA Sulsel) - Hundreds of journalists in Makassar staged a rally on Saturday to protest the summoning of Jakarta-based Kompas and Sindo editors by the police.
The rally was also participated in by academics from several universities and members of the Makassar Legal Aid Institute (LBH).
The protesters were members of AJI (Independent Journalists Alliance) of South Sulawesi, PWI (Indonesian Journalists' Association) of South Sulawesi, IJTI (Indonesian Television Journalists' Association), and the Makassar Journalists' Coalition opposing Press Criminalization.
"This is to protest the Police's intervention in the media. Summoning of journalists concerning news considered 'annoying' by the ruling elite only happens in undemocratic countries," Humairah, coordinator of the rally and a member of AJI, said.
The police's action was seen as intimidation and showed that the police were panic-stricken because they had failed to deal with the bribery case involving Anggodo Widjojo, a businessman believed to be also a legal case broker.
The executive editors of Kompas and Sindo dailies, respectively Budiman Tanuredjo and Nevi Hetharia, fulfilled a police summons on Friday for questioning about transcripts of Anggodo Widjojo's wiretapped conversations.
Budiman admitted that the summons had once been canceled but it was issued again and after some communication he was willing to come to meet it.
"They needed information and therefore I came," he said.
The recording of the wiretapped conversations between Anggodo Widjojo and a number of law enforcement officials linked to the case of antigraft officials Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M Hamzah had already been heard at a constitutional court session.
Budiman said the police had only asked for confirmation if Kompas had really published the transcript of the recording heard at the constitutional court.
"I said yes. And that is only what they asked," he said.
(T.SYS/F001)
The rally was also participated in by academics from several universities and members of the Makassar Legal Aid Institute (LBH).
The protesters were members of AJI (Independent Journalists Alliance) of South Sulawesi, PWI (Indonesian Journalists' Association) of South Sulawesi, IJTI (Indonesian Television Journalists' Association), and the Makassar Journalists' Coalition opposing Press Criminalization.
"This is to protest the Police's intervention in the media. Summoning of journalists concerning news considered 'annoying' by the ruling elite only happens in undemocratic countries," Humairah, coordinator of the rally and a member of AJI, said.
The police's action was seen as intimidation and showed that the police were panic-stricken because they had failed to deal with the bribery case involving Anggodo Widjojo, a businessman believed to be also a legal case broker.
The executive editors of Kompas and Sindo dailies, respectively Budiman Tanuredjo and Nevi Hetharia, fulfilled a police summons on Friday for questioning about transcripts of Anggodo Widjojo's wiretapped conversations.
Budiman admitted that the summons had once been canceled but it was issued again and after some communication he was willing to come to meet it.
"They needed information and therefore I came," he said.
The recording of the wiretapped conversations between Anggodo Widjojo and a number of law enforcement officials linked to the case of antigraft officials Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M Hamzah had already been heard at a constitutional court session.
Budiman said the police had only asked for confirmation if Kompas had really published the transcript of the recording heard at the constitutional court.
"I said yes. And that is only what they asked," he said.
(T.SYS/F001)