Pressures on Asian editors

Title

Creator

Rivett, Rohan

Language

English

Source

Volume XV (Issue No.1) January 1963

Year

1963

Subject

Asian editors

Journalists

Freedom of the press

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

More and more Asian newspapers are being made to conform as petty bureaucrats assume new role of intinridators and censors. A' PRESSURES ON ASIAN EDITORS Rohan Rivett Editors and publishers in most countries of non communist Asia are probably facing their most difficult period since the liberation struggles were won. We have now reached a point in many countries where we may further jeo pardize the remaining traces of freedom enjoyed by an ed itor simply by naming him and stating his problems. Cholera, yaws and beri beri spread fast in Southern Asia. Government attempts to trammel and subjugate the press have been just as in fectious. The spectacular extreme has been achieved by the Soekamo government of Indone sia. Six or seven years ago, there were more than a score of daily and weekly papers expressing a vigorous variety of viewpoints, from extreme left to extreme right. Today, the Indonesian press is entire- ~ ly gagged. It is harnessed to the chariot wheels of the Soekarno machine and virtually nothing can be read in it which can embarrass members of the government or the bu reaucracy. Pretences abandoned In Indonesia, even the pre tences have been abandoned. The national news agency has been controlled and is domi nated by cabinet ministers. Yet, in other Asian countries with more subtlety and heed for appearances, a variety of ~~ pressures are being used to force the courageous, exposing, protesting editor into line. In one country, relatively reowned for freedom of the * Rohan Rivett is director of the International Press Institute. 68 , Panorama < > press, there have been mina tory remarks about powers enjoyed by the chief execu tive to control political co lumnists and those who pub lish their writing. In an other, a couple of quite mild and strictly fair objections to government policy have led to presentation of demands for books and tax returns go ing back a number of years. The amount of information demanded alone can militate against effective working of this newspaper. What is even more alarm ing to many Asians publish ers and editors is the emerg ence of the provincial or lo cal civic boss and his chief bureaucrats as intimidators and censors. The matter is often not known to the cen tral government but there are police raids at night, threats and occasionally phy sical violence against editors and correspondents. Official “warmings”, which are no thing short of blackmail, have become increasingly common. What seems most alarming in several countries is that the situation has now deter iorated so far that the wrong ed newspapers and n e w spapermen dare not disclose their harships to the rest of the-press at home or abroad. Worse still, there are large areas where their colleagues, knowing and resenting what is being done, are still too fearful to publish the facts. If one might draw a rough graph of overall freedom of the press in non-communist Asia, it might be shown to have climbed steeply and cheerfully from about 1947 until six or seven years later. Then there was a marked le veling-off and, ever since, I fear, an undeviating but perceptible downward trend in the majority of areas. It is very easy and most unhelpful for the overseas visitor to criticize. The surprising and heart ening thing is that in towns and cities all over Asia, there are still so many publishers, editors and working journa lists, fiercely conscious of the threat, courageously resisting it and looking around for new armholds and support in their fight against the current. However, when you get be low the surface, you find that a similar pattern of newsJanuary 1963 69 papper behaviour has helped, in the undermining of the press by totalitarian-minded politicians. Among familiar factors damaging the press are: — a) Blackmarketing of news print and faking of circulation and, therefore, consumption figures; b) Soliciting of central gov ernment, city or municipal advertising. c) Suppression of matter em barrassing to the groups supported by the paper; d) Irresponsible reporting. None of these activities are unknown in western coun tries with far older traditions of press conduct and press freedom. It would be utterly wrong to suggest that the South Asian press as a whole bears responsibility for the gradual but general whittling down of its freedom by the political authority, particluarly in the last two or three years. It is easily understood that the great nationalist leader, who has been a champion of freedom of the press in the days of “colonial” dominat ion, finds it awkward and embarrassing when his poli tical opponents use this free dom of the press to criticize measures which he sincerely believes to be in the best in terests of his emergent peo ple. The tempting example of the world’s various dictator ships is always at hand. In Southern Asia today, many political leaders, both mili tary and non-military, are in clining to the view that free dom of the press is a nine teenth century luxury which has no relevance amid the desperate needs of twentieth century Asia. They are now unmindful of the disasters which befell those masters of a muzzled press, the dictator ial governments of nazi Ger many, Italy and Japan, des troyed in the ’forties’. It is extremely grim that, in 1962, one should find, in countries which nominally still pretend to freedom, an editor who looks you in the eyes and says: “I never know, when I leave home in the morn ing, if I shall see my wife and children again in the evening.” or “I expect several of us, in cluding myself, will have to go to jail before things are any better.” 70 Panorama There are still informed, thinking liberals in Asian cabinets and even in the mi litary cabals that now enjoy complete control in several of’ these countries. These men realize the dan gers to the development of their countries of destroying criticism, controversy and ex posure of grievances. They realize how easily in nations, where there is a great shortage of skills, train ing and general knowledge, government and bureaucracy, protected from criticism, can obstruct progress and dev elopment. The history of Asia, from Turkey across to China, is replete with exam ples of the damage so done under the empires of old. But these enlightened men are in a minority. The po wer-hungry, the unsure, the ambitious demagogues, hav ing once got themselves into the saddle, now prove them selves the first to turn on the healthy criticisms and expos ures by the press which often helped them attain office. In Asia today, these men are increasingly the influen tial majority. Hence, real and vivid fears, often backed by bitter personal experience, have invaded scores of news paper offices and executive desks. The scared publisher is quickly revealed. His editor ials steer clear of “sticky” subjects. Passion and fervour appear only in support of official government projects. Columnists are warmed abput those banderilla paragraphs which are the spice and high light of good political co lumnwriting about the po werful. The opposition part ies (where such exist!) get less space. In short, the paper is at pains to conform. This care fully ordered conformity is the muzzle of total frustrat ion for the conscientious journalist who believes his job is to expose and inform. Quite apart from the plight of many Asian newspaper men today, this tendency is an immense threat to the so lution of free Asia’s crying needs during the remainder of the twentieth century. The far-sighted in Asia see this clearly. How can publishers and editors in the western world strengthen their hands? JANUARY 1963 71

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