Indonesia: Jail for German freelance. German freelance TV journalist Seyam
Reda was sentenced to 10 months in prison on 18 January for violating the
terms of his two-month tourist visa for carrying out what the court called
"business-related activities".
Reda, a German citizen of Arab descent, was found guilty of violating the
immigration law. He had traveled to several towns in eastern Indonesia that
had been ravaged by ethnic violence before being arrested and his film
confiscated. The authorities believed the tapes were recordings of military
training in the Poso (Central Sulawesi) and Ambon (Maluku) regions.
His lawyer Budi Setiawan told journalists that he "He (Reda) was involved
in journalistic activities without proper authority, such as the possession
of an ID card, when in fact he was only a freelance cameraman. That is what
he is guilty of." "The verdict is too severe and we will appeal within a
week," Setiawan told The Jakarta Post.
Jakarta Post report.
http://www.indexonline.org/indexindex/20030121_indonesia.shtml
