ID :
75193
Thu, 08/13/2009 - 20:54
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/75193
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STATE SECRETS SOMETIMES LEAKED BY OFFICIALS THEMSELVES : MINISTER
Jakarta, Aug 13 (ANTARA) - State secrets can sometimes be leaked by state officials because of competition or rivalry among members of the government elite, Defense Minister Juwono Sudarsono said here on Thursday.
"This happens not only in developing countries but also in the United States," the minister said in a discussion on the State Secrecy Bill and the Freedom of the Press in Indonesia with media executives.
Sudarsono said the time frame, substance and scope the state secrecy bill being formulated by the government were quite different from what they would have been during the cold war era from 1950 to the 1960s.
In the era of freedom of information and the rapid development of information technology, it was impossible to protect state secrets as tightly as in the cold war era, he said.
"For example, is it possible for any state official now to protect state secrets in the blog or facebook he or she has created?" Sudarsono asked, adding these things also had be taken into account in defining state secrets.
Therefore, he said, although legal protection of state secrets was tight, it did not mean it could be applied in absolute terms.
"Although North Korea and Myanmar are able to limit the operations of foreign providers with even more sophisticated information technology, their secrets can still leak to the public," Sudarsono said.
Commenting on the State Secrecy Bill and the Free Press in Indonesia, the defense minister said there was such thing as absolute press freedom.
"Democracy means that state officials as well as the press should be able to play their respective role with a certain sense of responsibility," Sudarsono said.
Therefore, he added, the people should not excessively worry about the existence of the State Secrecy Bill because its scope, time frame, and substance were no longer based on cold war era concepts but in accordance with the development of information technology and social culture as referred to in the law on freedom to access public information. ***
"This happens not only in developing countries but also in the United States," the minister said in a discussion on the State Secrecy Bill and the Freedom of the Press in Indonesia with media executives.
Sudarsono said the time frame, substance and scope the state secrecy bill being formulated by the government were quite different from what they would have been during the cold war era from 1950 to the 1960s.
In the era of freedom of information and the rapid development of information technology, it was impossible to protect state secrets as tightly as in the cold war era, he said.
"For example, is it possible for any state official now to protect state secrets in the blog or facebook he or she has created?" Sudarsono asked, adding these things also had be taken into account in defining state secrets.
Therefore, he said, although legal protection of state secrets was tight, it did not mean it could be applied in absolute terms.
"Although North Korea and Myanmar are able to limit the operations of foreign providers with even more sophisticated information technology, their secrets can still leak to the public," Sudarsono said.
Commenting on the State Secrecy Bill and the Free Press in Indonesia, the defense minister said there was such thing as absolute press freedom.
"Democracy means that state officials as well as the press should be able to play their respective role with a certain sense of responsibility," Sudarsono said.
Therefore, he added, the people should not excessively worry about the existence of the State Secrecy Bill because its scope, time frame, and substance were no longer based on cold war era concepts but in accordance with the development of information technology and social culture as referred to in the law on freedom to access public information. ***
