Media gets rap for fueling nation's woes<\/p>\n
Rita A.Widiadana, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar<\/p>\n
The country's media must bear responsibility for creating social,
\neconomic and political instability through its shallow and
\nincomprehensive coverage of national issues, a senior journalist
\nhas said.<\/p>\n
Jakob Oetama, chief editor of Kompas daily told participants
\nat the annual meeting of Muhammadiyah, the second largest Muslim
\norganization in Indonesia, here on Friday night that the media
\nwas capable of giving early warnings, providing accurate
\ninformation and background on possible disintegration threats or
\nriots throughout the country.<\/p>\n
\"I felt very sad and guilty when conflicts, disturbances
\nand separatist activities took place in several areas such as
\nAmbon in Maluku, Sampit (Kalimantan) and most recently in Poso in
\nSulawesi. A widely-circulated paper like Kompas and other
\nprominent publications could be doing something more substantial
\nto stop them rather than exposing and covering the disturbances
\nonly from a news angle,\" Jakob said.<\/p>\n
\"I must admit that our (the media) understanding of and
\nsensitivity to the main and real problems faced by Indonesia and
\nits people are still minimal. Most journalists are generalists
\nwho know only a little about each subject,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Jakob said that all of the social, religious and political
\nconflicts currently affecting Indonesia were basically caused by
\na lack of understanding and a reluctance to learn about other
\npeople's habits, cultures and religions.<\/p>\n
\"Many of us still believe that our religion and culture are
\nthe best. But do we want to know or let alone to learn more about
\nothers? Javanese people only know about theirs. This also happens
\nwith other ethnic groups,\" Jakob said.<\/p>\n
He urged the media and religious and social organizations like
\nMuhammadiyah to jointly launch forceful intellectual and cultural
\ncampaigns to promote pluralism. \"Reinventing Indonesia or the
\nenlightenment of Indonesia is urgently needed to get the nation
\nout of crisis,\" Jakob said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Minister of National Education Malik Fajar,
\nwho is also a prominent Muhammadiyah figure, said Muhammadiyah
\nhas been consistent in advocating intellectual and moral
\ncampaigns to build a more modern, egalitarian and intellectual
\nsociety.<\/p>\n
Din Syamsyudin, secretary general of Muhammadiyah,
\nasserted that the organization had always adjusted to changes in
\nsociety. The theme of this year's meeting is national
\nenlightenment and cultural propagation, which requires the
\norganization to redefine its position and its roles within the
\nmulti-cultural Indonesian society.<\/p>\n
\"Religious leaders must recognize their congregations. They
\nmust understand each group has its own characteristics. Therefore
\nall religious lessons and teachings must be suited to their
\ndemands, their conditions,\" said Syamsudin, who is a member of
\nthe organization's special team to promote cultural
\npropagation.<\/p>\n
Saturday's sessions covered gender issues, Islam and culture
\nand other topics.<\/p>\n
The meeting runs until Sunday afternoon.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/media-gets-rap-for-fueling-nations-woes-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }