Excesses of Bali bombing VCD

Excesses of Bali bombing VCD

From Republika

The screening of a VCD revealing a person identified as one of the perpetrators of the latest Bail bombings at the residence of Vice President Jusuf Kalla to ulama from various Islamic groups in Indonesia will produce a multiple of effects.

On the one hand, the move was meant to convey information to ulamas as persons knowledgeable about the Islamic religion, in order to witness the impact of the misinterpretation of jihad (holy war) that leads to acts of terrorism in the name of a religion.

However, further examination indicates that by inviting ulamas as well as the media, the showing of the video will have negative effects. The media will disseminate the news intensively and explicitly without any comprehensive explanation about the perpetrator's action that are depicted in the VCD.

Chief spokesman for the National Police Aryanto Budiharjo even said that the police would not be responsible for the excesses that might arise as a result of the VCD screening.

One indication of the negative impact is the public hunt for copies of the VCD -- in this case, pirated versions of the news broadcasts. The public will therefore be directly consuming this material without adequate understanding or explanation.

Therefore, the government should take preventive measures to ensure that no further negative consequences follow as a result of the release of these images into the public domain.

NABIL AHMAD FAUZI Jakarta