General Elections (Pemilu) often show commotion and friction, however, all those involved in holding elections must maintain loyalty to Pancasila, because Pancasila is the basis of guidance in facing democracy. On the other hand, an attitude of tolerance must also be maintained, lest just because of differences in beliefs make Indonesian society intolerant.
Pancasila has provided the foundation so that the philosophical values of this ideology can be implemented in the administration of elections. In this case, of course, the Indonesian people have sovereignty, responsibility, rights and obligations to elect leaders who will form a government to provide services to all levels of society, as well as elect people’s representatives to oversee the running of the government.
The noble values of Pancasila contained in the five precepts of Pancasila are of course very extraordinary if they are practiced in the life of the nation and state, including in holding elections.
The first precept of Pancasila, Belief in One Almighty God, provides guidelines for election participants as well as the public as users of the right to vote so as not to carry religious sentiments for the purpose of gaining votes or winning elections. The first precept gives freedom to each individual to believe in their respective religions and beliefs, respect other people’s religions, and at the same time not impose their will on the religion and beliefs they believe in on others.
Likewise, in an election event, every voter should be given the freedom to determine his preferences based on his own conscience, including his religious beliefs, without forcing his religious beliefs, without forcing those beliefs on others, but must respect each other’s beliefs in make their political choices while in the voting booth.
Apart from that, the form of black campaigning by exploiting religious sentiments to win a political contest has been proven to have the impact of division, polarization, mutual suspicion, hostility, mutual hatred and spreading long-lasting grudges among the nation’s children. A situation like this is of course not in accordance with the vision of the nation’s founders when they gave birth to Pancasila, because it was precisely with Pancasila that the nation’s founders united various groups in Indonesia.
The second principle of Pancasila, which reads Just and Civilized Humanity, is a philosophy that in elections should be realized in the fair use of the right to vote. In the elections, every Indonesian citizen who is 17 years old, is married or has been married and has not had their rights revoked, has the right to elect their leader without exception and has equal votes or the same values and degrees.
Furthermore, the Unity of Indonesia, which is the third precept of Pancasila which is a guideline for voters and contestants in elections to maintain unity and harmony in using their right to vote and compete. This precept is of course an encouragement for Indonesian citizens to participate in elections.
He continued that the fourth precept of Pancasila, democracy led by wisdom in representative deliberations, is the basis for elections and democracy.
Meanwhile, in the last precepts of Pancasila, social justice for all Indonesian people, of course this will be a reference for election participants and voters to uphold justice. For the realization of justice in elections, election participants are of course prohibited from buying votes or distributing benefits, both material and non-material, to individuals or groups of voters.
Since the beginning, President Jokowi has been committed to always promoting religious moderation in public life. According to him, tolerance is an important part of religious moderation.
Previously, Indonesian Vice President Ma’ruf Amin said that intolerance towards other beliefs is a form of violation of the constitution. This is because the constitution guarantees freedom of religion.
Ma’ruf said Article 28E paragraph 1 of the 1945 Constitution explains that everyone is free to embrace a religion and worship according to their religion. Not only that, he also mentioned that Article 29 paragraph 2 states that the state guarantees the freedom of every resident to embrace their own religion. Ma’ruf said tolerance needs to be part of an attitude of life, namely that everyone can accept other people’s differences, whether they recognize opinions or beliefs.
According to Ma’ruf, tolerance is needed to maintain integrity and unity. As the majority religion, Ma’ruf said that Muslims need to adhere to the principle of brotherhood. Pancasila was excavated and born into Indonesian soil containing ethical values that are rooted in factual experience and religious deepening.
Gathering is a medium to connect brotherhood and sincere forgiveness is a therapy towards achieving mental health. Meanwhile, intolerance based on hatred and wrapped in radical understanding is a virus for mental health.
The 2024 election is getting closer, loyalty to Pancasila certainly needs to be maintained, on the other hand, religious tolerance also needs to be upheld because Indonesia is a nation consisting of various tribes, religions and inter-groups (SARA). So that tolerance is also needed to reduce unnecessary conflict.