This completely open world seems to make it easier for anyone to speak up, including insults openly. As was done by Rocky Gerung where he insulted Indonesian President Joko Widodo with the sentence “stupid bastard”. Of course these words are not appropriate for an academic and deserve a proper punishment.
On August 2, 2023, an Unlawful Act Lawsuit was filed by Dr. David Tobing is always an Advocate/Lecturer against Rocky Gerung as a Defendant who has been registered online with code number JKT.SEL-02082023DPY on August 2, 2023 registered at the South Jakarta District Court.
The lawsuit was filed based on Rocky’s words during the Grand Consolidation of the Million Labor Action which the plaintiff accessed on 2 August 2023 where the plaintiff was recorded making insulting remarks. At that time Rocky said, Jokowi’s ambition is to maintain his legacy, he (Jokowi) still goes to China to offer IKN, he still goes back and forth from one coalition to another to seek clarification of his fate, he thinks about his own destiny, he doesn’t think about the fate of us, you stupid bastards.
The insult is of course a destructive sentence that damages the dignity of the President who is currently held by Jokowi but also the plaintiff and the entire Indonesian nation. This has damaged the image of the Indonesian nation as a nation that is friendly and upholds cultural values, decency and decency.
David firmly stated that Rocky Gerung’s statement was baseless and irresponsible. On the other hand, this statement contradicts his position as an Indonesian Citizen (WNI), an academic and writer who is known for critical thoughts. It should be noted that the Defendant’s Rocky Gerung Official Youtube channel has 1.64 million subscribers with a very large number of views on every video it produces and publishes, so that it also has the potential to be imitated by other citizens.
What Rocky Gerung did was an unlawful act because he violated Article 1356 of the Criminal Code, which reads, ‘any unlawful act that causes harm to another person obliges the person who caused the loss to be wrong to compensate for the loss’.
In addition, Rocky has also violated the Republic of Indonesia Constitution Article 27 paragraph (1). It says ‘all citizens have the same position before law and government and are obliged to uphold that law and government without exception.
David also said that Rocky Gerung as the defendant was still an Indonesian citizen who should be obliged to uphold the government of Mr. Jokowi as Head of State of the Republic of Indonesia, not insult him. He also said that in relation to the obligation of Indonesian citizens to uphold the government, including anyone who is in the territory of the Republic of Indonesia, it is emphasized in Article 69 paragraph 1 of Law Number 39 of 1999 concerning Human Rights which states, everyone is obliged to respect the human rights of others, morals , ethics and order of life in society, nation and state.
What was said by Rocky as the defendant is of course very troubling to all Indonesian people and can be imitated by other Indonesian citizens if things like this are not prosecuted legally, the defendant deserves to be prohibited from being a speaker/source person at every event whether monologue or dialogue by the panel of judges who examine and adjudicate the a quo case.
On a different occasion, HM Darmizal as Chair of the Jokowi Volunteers (REJO), urged legal proceedings against political observer Rocky Gerung who was deemed to have insulted President Jokowi. He believes that the legal process needs to be carried out so that similar incidents do not happen again. He also hopes that the police will immediately process reports from volunteers who have entered with reported Rocky Gerung.
Apart from Jokowi’s volunteers, the party who was angry at Rocky Gerung’s words was Panglima Jilah who was the leader of the Tariu Borneo Bangkule Rajakng Red Army (TBBR). They, as the Dayak indigenous people, said that no one should insult the President anymore. The president is a symbol of the country. Insulting the President is the same as insulting the country.
He admitted that he did not accept Rocky’s statement, which he considered insulting and belittling the construction of the IKN. Because, according to him, IKN is the pride of the people of Kalimantan. Moreover, the development of IKN is also built for the sake of Indonesia’s progress in the future. He also asked the Police to process the case, if these demands were not met, his party would use customary law.
Indonesia is a country of laws, so Rocky Gerung’s words that have insulted and demeaned the dignity and symbols of the country, of course, deserve punishment, this of course can be an education for the public not to carelessly utter dirty words or blame.