The Narrative of “Dark Indonesia” Only Causes Commotion, Not a Reflection of the Real Condition of the Nation
Jakarta – The narrative of “Dark Indonesia” that has recently been rampant on social media and brought up in a number of demonstrations has drawn sharp criticism from various groups. This statement is considered not to reflect the real condition of the nation and instead causes public unrest and potential disruption to national stability.
The General Chairperson of the Central Board of Tunas Indonesia Raya (PP TIDAR), Rahayu Saraswati Djojohadikusumo, said that the narrative was deliberately manipulated for political interests.
“In my opinion, the Dark Indonesia narrative is a narrative that was indeed launched and fueled by parties who may not like the leadership of Mr. Prabowo Subianto,” said Saraswati.
She considered that the use of the narrative only worsened the situation in the midst of the government’s transition period which is focusing on building the foundation of long-term development. Saraswati, who is familiarly called Sara, invited the younger generation to continue to think critically but rationally, and not to be easily fooled by provocations that are not productive for the progress of the nation.
The same thing was also expressed by the General Chairperson of GP Ansor, Addin Jauharudin, who saw a certain motive behind the emergence of the movement. He considered that the narrative was very likely driven by foreign interests that wanted to weaken Indonesia’s independence, especially in terms of natural resource downstreaming policies.
“When Indonesia rises, foreign parties always try to hinder. We must realize that this issue did not grow organically from the people, but rather the result of engineering by outsiders who want to disrupt the nation’s independence,” Addin stressed.
Meanwhile, Minister of State Secretary, Prasetyo Hadi also responded to the emergence of the hashtag #IndonesiaGelap which was echoed in the demonstrations of a number of students. He emphasized that the dark image conveyed through the demonstrations and social media was very much in accordance with the current objective conditions of the country.
Prasetyo assessed that the government remains open to criticism, but he reminded that the delivery of aspirations should be done by upholding ethics and national responsibility.
In the midst of post-pandemic economic recovery efforts and peaceful government transitions, narratives that are not based on facts are feared to only worsen the atmosphere and distance the public from the spirit of unity. Collective awareness to maintain stability and encourage sustainable development is a shared responsibility of all elements of the nation.
