Analyst: Government-Student Dialogue Must Remain Open

The space for dialogue between the government and students is considered a vital element in maintaining a democratic climate amidst the prevalence of protests. The government’s openness to accepting student aspirations is seen as a means to find solutions to various issues of public concern.

The Executive Director of Kata Rakyat, Alwan Ola Riantobi, believes the government is demonstrating a willingness to accept input from students by opening channels for dialogue. He stated that such a step should be appreciated as part of democratic practice.

“Demonstrations are good for a democratic nation. What should be appreciated regarding the government is its willingness to accept and open dialogue with demonstrators. This shows that President Prabowo’s administration is democratic and not anti-criticism,” said Alwan.

According to Alwan, government openness is also evident in its reception of various inputs from academics, economists, and the public in response to the weakening of the rupiah exchange rate and the decline of the Jakarta Composite Index (IHSG). He assessed that the fiscal and monetary policies pursued by the government are directed towards addressing the primary causes of economic weakening.

“It must be understood that the weakening of the rupiah and the decline of the IHSG are due to various factors, such as global economic conditions, war, rising global interest rates, political uncertainty, or domestic economic slowdown. Therefore, the government’s response is adjusted to the primary causes of these declines,” he said.

Alwan also touched upon the implementation of the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme, which has recently become an issue in student protests. He noted that the government has been evaluating the implementation of the programme to rectify various obstacles in the field.

“As for the MBG, it is a form of President Prabott’s commitment to fulfilling his political campaign promises. When there are deficiencies in the implementation of the MBG, the government immediately undertakes mitigation and creates space for future improvements,” he said.

Consequently, Alwan hopes that the dialogue space opened by the government can be utilised by all parties to convey aspirations constructively. He believes that the government’s commitment to improving various policies should reduce the escalation of protest actions.

“The escalation of student demonstrations also needs to be examined to see whether their demands are based on deep studies and research. We hope there are no rogue elements exploiting student actions to undermine the government. Therefore, if the government is committed to improving and opening spaces for dialogue, the escalation of mass protests should decrease and cease,” he concluded.