JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Taking the law into one’s own hands and persecution, or wantonly hunting down people accused or suspected of wrongdoing, have continued to occur because their perpetrators are given the space to act like law enforcers. Therefore, law enforcement must take swift action to prevent such acts.
What has been happening is that law enforcers have appeared to be ambiguous in their stance in handling persecution cases, and seem to be focusing more on the victims instead of the perpetrators. In the persecution case that befell doctor Fiera Livita, 40, for example, the police were witnesses when Fiera’s persecutors pressured her to write a letter of apology.
Another indication is that the Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) has found that of the 88 persecution cases that occurred between January 2017 and June 7, 2017, the court has tried and found 12 victims guilty. Most of the victims were sentenced to two years in prison.
Alissa Wahid from the Anti-persecution Coalition said that oftentimes, law enforcers would adopt the stance of maintaining public peace for the sake of order and security, but without providing protection and legal guarantees of the constitutional rights of those persecuted.
“Law enforcers must provide certainty that persecutory groups do not harm victims and instead focus on the legal process,” Alissa said on Monday (27/11) in Jakarta. Alissa, along with a number of civil organizations, are campaigning against persecution.
Separately, National Police spokesperson Insp. Gen. Setyo Wasisto said that the National Police leadership had ordered police officers to prioritize preventing persecution. This is to be done by urging citizens not to take the law into their own hands.
According to University of Indonesia sociology professor Bambang Widodo Umar, as a law enforcement institution, the National Police must also be consistent in conducting early detection, monitoring and taking social control measures regularly in areas that are prone to acts of persecution.
SAFEnet regional coordinator Damar Juniarto, who is also a member of the Anti-persecution Coalition, said that SAFEnet had suggested that the National Police form a quick-response unit to combat persecution. Based on a SAFEnet investigation, the 88 persecution cases that happened this year as of June 7 and had risen to 100 cases by November, were planned and systematic acts.
He said that the recent cases of rampant persecution were not merely random acts, but were committed by perpetrators as part of an organized group. In fact, a special team existed that hunted down targeted victims and later circulated videos on social media that contained the victims’ personal information.
Sometimes, a perpetrator would create a fake account using the targeted victim’s identity and information. They would then fill the account with content that contained provocative messages related to ethnicity, religion, race and societal groups.
(SON/SAN/EDN/SEM)
