Media reports help uncover corruption cases: KPK chief

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Media reports on alleged corruption cases can be a valid basis for law enforcers to start investigations, the head of Indonesia's anti-graft body says.

Antasari Azhar, chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), said media reports have contributed to the commission's probes of corruption allegations.

"One of our information sources for eradicating corruption is media reports," he said Tuesday, adding that other information sources included state intelligence, the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) and public complaints.

"Therefore, I urge journalists not to be afraid of reporting corruption allegations because media coverage on corruption in one area could deter similar practices in other areas," he said.

Antasari cautioned, however, that the media should be aware of the proper legal terminology in order to avoid being sued for libel.

"In fact, not every bureaucrat is happy with critics," he said. He added that sometimes media reports resulted in journalists facing criminal charges after plaintiffs filed charges under the Criminal Code instead of the Press Law.

Antasari was speaking during a ceremony to install the Jakarta board of the Association of Indonesian Journalists for Reform (PWI-Reformasi). Also attending the ceremony was Iwan Piliang, the national coordinator of PWI-Reformasi.

Iwan said Indonesian journalists still faced the risk of being charged under the Criminal Code even if they were careful in reporting on corruption allegations.

He cited the example of Time magazine, which was ordered by the Supreme Court to pay US$105.2 million to former president Soeharto for defamation.

"In this case, we support Time because it acted in accordance with journalistic standards," he said.

Iwan expressed concern about the performance of the domestic media in covering corruption issues. "We are still weak in verification," he said, adding that he hoped his organization could contribute to improving the standard of journalism in the country.

Antasari said the media should follow all legal formalities to prevent journalists from facing criminal charges for libel.

"Reports should not consist of slander. Presumption of innocence must be the priority," he said.

He added that the media should be careful in referring to anybody's legal status in their reports. "The media should understand when to refer to somebody as a suspect, a convict or only as an information source."

Antasari acknowledged that he would not speak to the press when he was in the early stages of an investigation.

"In the early processes of an investigation, all people are still information sources. Mentioning their names to the media will only ruin their image publicly," he said, adding that he would speak to media only once the investigation was finished and he was ready to submit the results to prosecutors.

He said he was currently doing a media road show to build better synergy between the graft body and journalists. (alf)