World Human Rights Day, commemorated on December 10 every year, is a significant momentum for the global community. In Indonesia, human rights issues often come up in the context of politics and the media. We also heard from S. Kunto Adi Wibowo, Ph.D., who’s the Head of Communication Science Study Programme and is a political communication expert. He shared his views on human rights, especially in today’s context. Kunto emphasized the value of marking World Human Rights Day as an educational opportunity for the community. He said that people often don’t understand human rights. For example, some teachers or lecturers occasionally conducting verbal or physical violence to the students. It might seem like a small thing, but it is actually against the code of ethics. Kunto said that the main human rights violations are usually occured to those who against the government. This includes government officials like the police, judges, and prosecutors.
“… it’s only government officials who violate human rights. So the legal apparatus, the police, the army, judges, and prosecutors are the ones who are very likely to violate human rights. This is because human rights are opposed to the government or the state, which is very likely to restrict or limit the human rights of citizens,” he said (09/12/2024).
“If we look at conversations on social media, for example, there are still many misunderstandings about human rights. For example, ‘Yes, if human rights are the police beating demonstrators, but where are the human rights if demonstrators throw stones at the police?’ The answer is that it’s not a matter of human rights. It’s a crime. The police should be defending, instead of offending the people,” he continued.
Dr. Evie Ariadne Shinta Dewi, M.Pd., a Political Communication’s lecturer in the Communication Science Study Programme of Universitas Padjadjaran, also shared her thoughts. She viewed World Human Rights Day as a chance to think about the social and political issues in Indonesia, especially the human rights violations that happen there.
“… this doubt is not without reason. It’s a reflection of the reality of socio-political phenomena, which often take the form of human rights violations. For example, we have seen intimidation by unscrupulous officials against environmental activists, mining, agrarian, and religious groups. “There are also minority groups or certain indigenous peoples, the increasingly widespread practice of TPPO or human trafficking, and even criminal cases that easily take the lives of others, especially women and children,” she stated (10/12/2024).
Both Kunto and Evie encouraged the public to view Human Rights Day not just as a commemoration, but as an opportunity to advocate for and protect the rights of citizens.
Happy World Human Rights Day! (Ed)