British journalists face five-month imprisonment in Indonesia

Two British journalists were sentenced to 5 months imprisonment and were obliged to pay 50 million rupiah (about 3,700 U.S. Dollars) each by Indonesian prosecutor for violating the nation's immigration law when they filmed a documentary program in Indonesia's Batam several months ago.

"Asking the judge panel to sentence the two with 5 months imprisonment, deductible with detention periods and fine them with 50 million rupiah each, replaceable with one month imprisonment," the prosecutor, Bani Ginting, read out his prosecution against the British journalists Neil Richard George Bonner and Rebecca Bernadette Margaret Prosser in Batam state court on Thursday.

Bani said that the two journalists have violated the nation's criminal code for their activities to reconstruct a sea hijacking scene in Batam for the purpose of their documentary program.

"They misused the given permit to carry out other activities," Bani said as quoted by a local media.

The two journalists were arrested by Indonesian navy on May 28 in Belakangpadang waters in Batam. They pay local talents to reconstruct the sea piracy scene when they were arrested by Indonesian authority.

They were detained in police and local prosecutor office since then, charged of violating their Visa on Arrival (VoA) was which supposed for tourism activities.

Indonesia previously jailed two French journalists for two and a half months after they were proved of violating their tourist visa. They were arrested when conducting coverage in easternmost province of Papua.

In May this year, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has officially freed foreign media to carry out their journalism jobs in any place across the nation.

Indonesia's previous administrations banned foreign journalists to make coverage in Papua and Sulawesi's Poso for security reason. Enditem