Govt told to be open to criticism<\/p>\n
YOGYAKARTA (JP): A scholar has urged the government to be more
\nreceptive to criticism and not maliciously brand critics as
\nantigovernment.<\/p>\n
The deputy rector of the Indonesian Islamic University, Moh.
\nMahfud criticized officials for being overly sensitive to
\ncriticism and perceiving it as a threat to stability.<\/p>\n
\"The government's insensitivity to accommodate public
\ncriticism has triggered violent riots,\" Mahfud said Monday at the
\nlaunch of Social Criticism in Development, a book jointly edited
\nby Mahfud, Edy Suandi Hamid, Suparman Marzuki and Eko Prasetyo,
\nin Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
\"Criticism always has a negative connotation here, because the
\ngovernment focuses on political stability above all other
\nissues,\" Mahfud noted.<\/p>\n
Mahfud strongly condemned the current state of affairs,
\ncharacterized by rampant monopolistic and collusion practices and
\nthe weakening of the country's legislative bodies.<\/p>\n
He lamented that law enforcers often manipulated laws to
\ndefend their own interests and ignore public interests. He then
\ncriticized the restriction of student activities which curbed
\nacademic freedoms.<\/p>\n
He said that Javanese culture may not be as tolerant as one
\nwould think in terms of allowing open differences of views.<\/p>\n
\"The culture of criticism must be revived if the nation wants
\nto be democratic,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Separately, Yogyakarta's Legal Aid Institute revealed that the
\nnumber of rights violations in Yogyakarta had risen to 533 this
\nyear.<\/p>\n
\"Land appropriation and labor problems rose sharply while
\nviolations of civic and political rights increased by 60.7
\npercent,\" said its director Budi Hartono.<\/p>\n
Budi said most violations of political rights occurred during
\nthe general election campaign in May, pointing to the fact that
\nthe government failed to be fair during the electoral process.<\/p>\n
Forced land appropriations occurred in Bantul, Sukoharjo and
\nWonosobo regencies. Local officials often used the public
\ninterest as a pretext to force people to give up their land
\nwithout adequate compensation.<\/p>\n
\"Violations of human rights took place because the government
\nuses violence and intimidation in land disputes,\" Budi said.<\/p>\n
Land owners, especially farmers, often find themselves
\npowerless against the government. He warned of possible social
\nturmoil if the tendency continued. (23\/44\/prb)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/govt-told-to-be-open-to-criticism-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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