CIDISS. The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) estimates that the spreading of hate speech and intolerance will occur in the 2018 Serial Election. Therefore, these two things will be the focus of Komnas HAM’s monitoring.
In a joint press conference with the commissioners, at Komnas HAM Office, Komnas HAM Chairman Ahmad Taufan Damanik said, “We will focus on hate speech practices, intolerance, which may arise.
Despite the focus on these two issues, Komnas HAM will not turn a blind eye to other issues concerning the human rights perspective. For example, keep an eye on non-discrimination practices in the elections. Komnas HAM hopes that the election participants did not do so in order to win the attention of the voters.
Komnas HAM will submit a proposed human rights indicator that could be a reference of both election organizers. Ahmad said, there we will in detail (convey) about the concept of human rights that we will input in monitoring the factors.
In this simultaneous elections, Komnas HAM will play a role in giving warning to the community not to practice SARA. Ahmad said that sometimes the political contest in the framework of winning, (being) forgotten, (instead) to execute others, including discriminating certain groups.
According to Ahmad, the signs leading to SARA in Pilkada 2018 began to be seen. It is beginning to appear, but there is a tendency of primodial, religious issues, in mobilizing public opinion. It is not healthy for our democracy.
Komnas HAM also hopes that this simultaneous elections will be the implementation of a human rights based democracy party.
Hope in this political year society more selective and intelligent in receiving wrong information in social media. It is very dangerous if the info hoax is reproduced to motivate the negative. Unity in our society can be divided, let alone ahead of elections. Hopefully the people of Indonesia have a more advanced thinking in other words more able to filter hoax news so that elections will be in unison Year 2018 run smoothly and uphold human rights.
By: Andi Putra Harahap *)