British journalists freed from

Indonesian jail say UK treated them

like criminals
Documentary film-makers Rebecca Prosser and Neil Bonner say they felt
let down by British officials during months in detention
Rebecca Prosser and Neil Bonner have criticised the Foreign Office. Photograph: Martin Godwin for the
Guardian

Jessica Elgot-Wednesday 11 November 2015

Two British journalists held for more than five months in an Indonesian prison have described
their relief at being back on UK soil but criticised the Foreign Office for a dismissive attitude
they said had left them feeling alone.
Documentary film-makers Rebecca Prosser, 31, and Neil Bonner, 32, said they were treated
like petty criminals by the British government.

The FCO need to figure out how they protect journalists, said Prosser, speaking to the
Guardian after the pair touched down at Heathrow. We were treated like common criminals,
as far as they were concerned. It was a complex, political case and they chose to use the
same line as if we had been caught taking five kilos of cocaine into the country.

Prosser being embraced by family and friends. Photograph: Steve Parsons/PA

Bonner and Prosser had been threatened with charges including being a threat to national
security, which carries up to 12 years in prison, but after months in detention were eventually
convicted of not having correct visas and sentenced to two and a half months, meaning they
could leave prison immediately because of time served.
They had been detained since May, after being picked up by the Indonesian navy on the
island of Batam, while filming a documentary about piracy and corruption in the military in
the strait of Malacca on behalf of production company Wall to Wall.

Ive worked in many different countries where I thought the UK government would help me if
things went wrong, Prosser said. Now I realise I am on my own. We were well supported by
friends, families and our company Wall to Wall, but if we didnt have that, if wed been
working for a small company that couldnt afford support, we would have been in serious
trouble.
The FCOs statement expressing concern was literally a cut-and-paste job, Bonner said. We

were disappointed with big mistakes that were made that could have jeopardised our safety.
Prosser said the FCO had initially failed to send a diplomatic notice to Indonesiaabout their
case. There is a specific document which governments can send expressing interest in a
case, noting the British government is watching it at the highest levels and due process must
be followed, she said. We were told it had been sent, and a month later our families
followed up and it was never sent. That could have really compromised us. We dont know
how that affected the case.
Throughout their detention, the pair said they suspected their case was being closely
monitored by the Indonesian military and was about far more than irregular visas. A senior
Indonesian navy commander, Rear Admiral Taufiqurrahman told the Jakarta Post the filmmakers could tarnish the image of the Malacca strait as a crime-prone area.

The navy monitored our whole case, Bonner said. They would turn up to see us in prison,
illegally, they would visit the prosecutor, according to our lawyer. They were adamant they
wanted the case to go to court.
Bonner said: We were very concerned we were being used as political pawns between
hardliners and liberals over press freedom, which is a big issue right now.

The national security charge eventually evaporated, they bandied about another charge
from the 1950s about foreigners inciting unrest. They were looking for anything they could
get us with, said Prosser.
Both said they had not been expecting the conditions in prison to be as bad as they were,
though being foreigners afforded them some privileges. It was massively overcrowded,
Bonner said. The conditions were shocking and much much worse for other prisoners, who
were in cells for nine people with 22 crammed in, for 23 hours a day.

Money buys you everything, and we got some privileges because eyes were on us. Fresh air
is expensive, money buys you fresh air in prison, you dont get to leave your cell unless you
pay.

We washed from troughs with plastic buckets, we ate dirty food, I got infections and the
clinic there didnt have the medicine to treat it properly, Prosser said. We have visitors who
could bring us things so we were lucky. Leaving prison I actually felt a sense of hopelessness

for the people I met, who have no hope of justice at all. I feel a responsibility to them.
Arriving back at Heathrow on Wednesday, both noticeably thinner and still wearing battered
flip-flops, the pair were greeted by dozens of whooping friends and colleagues, from as far
afield as Glasgow, many of whom pushed through the barriers to embrace them.
The welcoming committee wore striped shirts a favourite design of Prossers and blond
moustaches like Bonner had sported before his detention. Prossers six-year-old nephew had
been given special permission by teachers to be there, with his aunts homecoming
considered exceptional circumstances.

Prosser and Bonner surrounded by their welcoming committee at Heathrow. Photograph: Steve Parsons/PA

I feel like my strength is coming back, now theyre home, Bonners mother, Barbara Shaw,
said. I had days where I would just burst into tears at anything, just cry at adverts, filling in
forms at work. Its been so hard and weve had to keep it all bottled up.
Bernard Prosser, Rebeccas father, who had travelled from Birmingham with Rebeccas mother
Carmel, said he felt a weight had been lifted but also criticised the governments of the UK and
Indonesia for their attitude to journalists. Its plain intimidation, we know that. If it had been
just an immigration offence, why were they there for five months?
Foreign journalists are required to obtain special visas for reporting in Indonesia, but recent

violations have led to reporters being deported immediately, rather than after months of
detention.
Leanne Klein, chief executive of Wall to Wall, said: We are so pleased that Becky and Neil are
safely back on home soil and with their families.

Their wellbeing and safe return home has been our priority throughout this difficult time. I
want to thank my team, particularly our lawyers here and in Indonesia, and everyone who has
been involved in securing an end to their detention.
Posted by Thavam