MP Hillary Brigitta Calls Amien Rais's Statement Slander, Not Part of Democracy

A recent statement by senior political figure Amien Rais has once again drawn public attention. He is known to have commented on the personal life of Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya. It is known that a few days ago, Amien Rais uploaded a video titled “KEEP THE PALACE AWAY FROM MORAL SCANDALS” on the Amien Rais Official YouTube channel. This immediately became a focal point. Now, the video has suddenly become inaccessible to users in Indonesia. Even the government has requested its takedown, citing content that includes hoaxes and hate speech. Regarding the video, the MP assesses that the remarks made by Amien Rais have exceeded the limits of criticism and tend towards slander that does not align with the principles of healthy democracy. DPR member and legal practitioner Hillary Brigitta Lasut views the narrative as having surpassed public ethical boundaries and dangerously dragging the presidential institution into a whirlpool of irresponsible speculation. “This is no longer criticism; this is an unfounded attack. We all agree that criticism is important in democracy, but when accusations are thrown without clear evidence, it turns into slander,” said Hillary Brigitta Lasut. She also regrets the attitude of a figure of Amien Rais’s calibre, who should filter information before it is consumed by the wider public. Hillary emphasises that public figures bear a great responsibility as guardians of information quality, rather than becoming sources of speculation that poison the public space with unverified assumptions. As someone who has directly interacted with the working system at the Cabinet Secretariat, Hillary provides real testimony to refute the smear against Lieutenant Colonel Teddy. “I am a living witness to how swiftly the Cabinet Secretary handles public reports. One of them is the case of injustice affecting a child from a border region,” she added. In closing her statement, Hillary calls on all political actors to continue upholding ethics and conscience in competing in the public space. She stresses that political rivalry should be filled with ideas and real contributions to society, not personal attacks that have the potential to divide.