By: Sunarman
When Rizieq Shihab was arrested, several hoaxes were spread in cyberspace. The provisional suspicion is that it is FPI who spread the fake news, with the aim of seeking sympathy among the public. They became empathetic to Rizieq who was detained at Polda Metro Jaya, when in fact, the FPI commander was guilty and did not need to be defended at all costs.
Rizieq Shihab is the center of FPI and when he was sent to prison, the mass organization immediately responded emotionally. Even FPI supporters came to the police station and surrendered so that they could be bartered with Rizieq. This is surprising because why ask to be arrested for someone else’s sake? Fanaticism has made FPI members lose their minds.
Another FPI tactic to gain public sympathy is to spread fake news on social media. In recent days a viral photo shows a man smiling while closing his eyes. In the photo narrative, he is mentioned as a member of the FPI who was martyred for defending Rizieq during the incident on the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road.
Only a day later emerged the fact that the photo was a hoax. Because in reality, this man is indeed a member of FPI, but his condition is still alive. Public deception like this is annoying, because they lie just to get sympathy with the public. In addition, he indirectly prayed that his life would be taken, because he claimed to have died.
The second hoax spread by FPI is a video clip showing a shooting scene. The public suddenly linked it to the incident when Rizieq Shihab’s bodyguard was involved in a shootout with the authorities. Even though after being traced, the video was not taken on the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road, because the CCTV was in an off position. But a video clip in Colombia.
Head of the Public Relations Division of the National Police, Inspector General Argo Yuwono, stated that Bareskirim Polri had given direction to Polda Jaya, all hoax news that were not true would be processed. Bareskrim through the Directorate of Cyber Crime is conducting a search regarding hoax information related to the incident on the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road.
The purpose of the search is so that the public is not affected by fake news and videos. Because when opening cyberspace, sometimes there are ordinary people who don’t understand the difference between hoaxes and real news. So they believed it and turned pro-FPI. Even though the video was fake and deliberately distributed, so that more sympathy for Rizieq Shihab’s case.
FPI chooses cyberspace as a place for hoaxes to spread, because it is relatively free there and lacks censorship. So that when there is fake news, it can qualify for status on FB, and make many people dumbfounded. So they pity Rizieq Shihab and reject his detention.
Even though the FPI commander is clearly guilty of spreading hate speech and violating health protocols.
In addition, when people access cyberspace, they are usually in a relaxed brain condition. Because they open it at recess and seek entertainment there. In psychological theory, when the human brain is relaxed, it is easier to believe something that is real in front of them. So you don’t know that it is a misleading hoax.
FPI also understands that Indonesians tend to believe in hoaxes, especially when coupled with narratives that inspire emotion. The reason is because in our country, the level of literacy is still low, which makes people believe something too much without tracing the truth.
Don’t let anyone be consumed by hoax news and videos spread by FPI. Because their aim is to seek sympathy and playing victims, so the public pity Rizieq Shihab. Even though he was clearly guilty of never filtering the contents of his lecture and violating the physical distancing protocol.
(The author is a citizen living in Tangerang)