Live News - A Survival Guide - International Federation of Journalists

CHAPTER 7Fighting back: What the IFJ and journalists’organisations can do116the security apparatus, with police and military agents suspectedof torture and abductions. Now, in a 'reform' era, attacks on journalistsare predominantly from non-state forces of various backgrounds.The Alliance of Independent Journalists Indonesia (AJI)says that those most often identified as attackers are affiliatedwith the ruling political party. Militant members of some religious-basedorganisations are also reported as threatening journalists.Lasykar Jihad (Holy War Forces) and the Islamic Defender Front(FPI) are two examples of religious groups that have threatenedjournalists or media they consider as violating their beliefs. Inaddition, groups suspected of being paid by unscrupulous businessmenalso threaten journalists’ safety.The AJI recorded 104 attacks on journalists in the year May 2000to May 2001, from psychological pressure to physical force. Abouthalf were carried out by people in crowds or mobs. The followingyear, the incidence of violence towards journalists increased to 118cases. The AJI says there is a strong impression that the ruling eliteconsiders mass violence as reasonable revenge on a careless mediathat offends public sensitivity, especially when the violence comesfrom their own fanatical supporters.The journalists’ alliance provides legal services for memberswho have been attacked, and has launched a public awareness campaignto end attacks. AJI reminds the public that any action thatprevents a journalist from obtaining and disseminating informationis an attack on human freedom in general. AJI reminds its ownmembers of the need for the highest professional standards.The organisation provided safety training for its members inAugust 2002. The two-day course covered legal support, labour regulations,trade union support and safety in conflict areas, drawingon the experience of freelance journalists. In areas where electricitymay fail and contact with base is difficult, journalists agreed onthe need to have emergency plans to fall back on and innovativeways of filing copy — one journalist suggested carrier pigeons! Theimportance of independence and careful preparation was stressedas was the need to know the geography, culture and people.SummaryCampaigning may be as spectacular as the mass demonstrationorganised in Macedonia, or the strikes organised in Nepal, or itmay be as unglamorous as writing a letter of protest or seeking ameeting with a parliamentarian. There is evidence that whenever