KOREA: Press freedom "deadly" goal in Asia

Editors and journalists from different Asian newspapers discuss dangers to press freedom in their respective nations

The Korea Herald
Monday, May 30, 2005
 
Seoul -- "This discussion [on press freedom] should be called 'deadly' business rather than 'risky business.'" With those sobering, somber words, Kajsa Tornroth, director of Press Freedom Programs of the World Association of Newspapers, set the stage in opening remarks for a special session on the problems faced in Asia by journalists.

Journalism is one of the most dangerous occupations in the world and in some countries still remains a day-to-day struggle, a number of journalists who have worked Asian trouble-spots testified yesterday at the Grand Intercontinental Hotel, Seoul.

The title for the roundtable discussion, one day before the formal opening of the WAN Congress and Forum, said it all - "Risky Business - Newspapers in the fight against corruption." Featured were six journalists from Malaysia, Indonesia, China, India and Nepal who have suffered through government repression.

Editors, some of whom had hardly had time to unpack their travel bags, gathered at mid-morning in the hotel's Chrysanthemum Room, set up with a bunch of round tables and a wide screen on which speakers showed visuals to back up their presentations.

Steven Gan, editor-in-chief of Malaysiakini.com newspaper of Malaysia, recalled a government raid on his Internet newspaper. "The police raided our office and 'arrested' 19 computers from the office. We held demonstrations against government repression of freedom and the police eventually returned all the computers except two."

Malaysiakini.com is the only democratic space left in Malaysia, he said, as the government censors all newspapers except for the Internet, which remains a free space because the government needs to promote its Multimedia Super Corridor, a Silicon Valley-type project.

Bambang Harymurti, editor-in-chief of the Temple Daily and Weekly of Indonesia, traced the history of repression that Indonesia has experienced, noting that the extent of restrictions on the press has varied from regime to regime.

While the Press Freedom Index showed Indonesia to have the freest press in Asia in 2001 under the Habibie government, by 2004 the ranking had fallen significantly under President Megawati Sukarnoputri's term to 117th among 167 countries in terms of freedom of the press.

"To keep the democracy and freedom of press, we should have a new government every five years," said Harymurti.

Harymurti was sentenced to one year in prison in September 2004 on charges of criminal defamation brought by one of the most influential businessmen in Indonesia. This sentence was condemned by press freedom organizations, and he has appealed the verdict, making his case one of the most high-profile defamation cases in south Asia.

From China, Qingchuang Lian, managing editor of the 21st Century World Herald, detailed the extent of corruption in China, and the important role that journalism plays in the fight against corruption.

"High-ranking officers' cases are out of press reach. Corruption related to large amounts of money is not open to the press," said Lian. "On a positive note, anti-corruption stories or corruption investigative stories always bring surges in the circulation or audience rate," he said.

Sankarshan Thakur, executive editor of India's Tehelka newspaper, shocked the audience, stating "I wish to introduce myself here as a dog. Give me a wall and I shall most likely piss on it. Or I will bark to see if there is a loose brick likely to fall off. I do not make appreciating walls my concern."

The "walls" Thakur spoke of is the "Soviet system of information control and dissemination" that his government controls.

He expressed concerns about the disconcerting role of the press in "becoming players in the establishment," cooperating in government corruption and only "feel-good reporting on the lives of rich and beautiful people."

His paper, Tehelka, is a 25-cent tabloid weekly with 40 pages, reporting on "stories that other newspapers do not tell".

Commented Thakur, "There is a respect and hunger in the readers for these stories."

Narayan Wagle, editor of the Kantipur National Daily of Nepal, talked about his newspaper's reports of anti-king demonstrations and criminal charges that he has suffered as a result.

Editors sitting at various tables asked questions and expressed concern for their fellow journalists in Asia.

"Try contacting the World Press Freedom Committee in Washington D.C. They have a fund to help legal cases for journalists who are imprisoned," said Roger Parkinson from Canada.

While the topic of discussion was grim, a spirit of humorous camaraderie pervaded throughout the program, and the moderator, Kavi Chongkittavorn, ended on a positive note, "During the past 3 hours we have raised many issues. The best thing that came up is that you can be an excellent journalist, expose corruption, and make good money, too."

WAN condemns violations of press freedom
 
The Board of the World Association of Newspapers condemned violations of press freedom in Cuba, Iraq, Eritrea and Nepal in resolutions issued here yesterday.

The board called on Cuban President Fidel Castro to release 23 imprisoned journalists and to end the harassment of independent journalists in the country.

The journalists "remain in jail under appalling condition," said the WAN board. The journalists were arrested during a wave of repression in March 2003.

"They are subjected to isolation, prohibition of visits and severe punishment when they choose to fast or disobey prison rules to protest their mistreatment. Many of the journalists are ill, but deprived of adequate medical care," said the WAN board.

It also condemned the imprisonment of 16 journalists in Eritrea and called on the east African nation to restore freedom of the press and access to information.

Most of the journalists were imprisoned after a government crackdown in 2001 that saw the closure of all independent media outlets and the suspension of civil and political liberties in Eritrea.

The board called King Gyanendra of Nepal to restore civil rights, including freedom of the press, which were suspended when he seized power four months ago.

"Countless journalists have been arrested, harassed and detained by the authorities since February," the WAN board said. "Censorship and financial pressure have been imposed on independent media outlets, creating conditions where journalists are no longer capable of carrying out their work."

The board also condemned the killings and kidnappings of journalists in Iraq, the most dangerous country in the world to practice journalism.

Ten local journalists have been killed since January. In the same time period, five foreign journalists have been abducted. Four of them have been released.

The global organization for the newspaper industry named Iraq and the Philippines as the most dangerous countries for journalists.

Freedom of expression and the safety of journalists are under siege in most regions of the world, the Paris-based WAN said in its half-year review of press freedom released Saturday.

"The press is simply muzzled in many countries. Attacks on journalists are common," the report said.

In total, 38 journalists were killed around the world between last November and May.

The body criticized the governments of Nepal, Cuba, Belarus, Turkmenistan, Eritrea, China and Zimbabwe as the worst offenders which "have refused to surrender their monopoly on information, finding more and more audacious mechanisms to maintain their vice-like grip on the media."

Regarding China, the report said ongoing attacks on cyber-dissidents in the name of national security continue to land scores of journalists and human rights activists in prison with harsh sentences.

In March, political essayist Zhang Lin was arrested on suspicion of inciting subversion for his online writings. Internet writer Zheng Yichun was charged in April with inciting subversion for writing articles critical of the Communist Party and Chinese government policy.

Date Posted: 5/30/2005