Responsibility of Pancasila press
Responsibility of Pancasila press
Reading newspapers relaxes and refreshes me. I forget my tiredness and worries. I used to learn much from newspapers, but not anymore. During the last few weeks, newspapers have added to my stress. Crimes, robberies, killings, rapes, and countless warnings about the possible communist comeback feature in the papers. One cannot deny that communism is a real danger, but why repeat this again and again.
Are we losing our self-confidence? Are we losing our belief in the power and strength of Pancasila? All these warnings make people nervous, they are suspicious of each other and some are heading for nervous breakdowns. The daily Merdeka on Nov. 13, 1995, reported that at the recent congress of Kosgoro, almost all the ministers pointed out this very sensitive situation. People are easily caught by all kinds of issues and they do not know what to do or where to turn to and they therefore become easy prey for agitators.
It is about time we put a stop to this situation. We should continuously point out that we are strong because we have a mighty weapon called Pancasila, which has proven its strength in the past.
We should point out the progress Indonesia is making. A strong economy, growing industry, a remarkable advance in the mastery of technology. We have proven we can construct planes and boats that have acquired a prospective internationally market.
Another success is the decrease in the percentage of poor people and the rapid increase in literacy. Health conditions have improved and the posyandu (integrated health service) has drawn world attention.
These facts should be emphasized, not the formless organizations or any other potential dangers.
We have enough intelligence organizations, the Armed Forces is strong, and our government has the legal power to act. So let these organizations tackle the potential dangers silently and efficiently and allow the people to lead calm and happy lives. If subversion is detected, the law enforcers should act quickly and resolutely to crush it. I sometimes read about deeds detrimental to our country, but no action is taken.
I read about an Islamic sect trying to revive Negara Islam Indonesia (Islamic State) in West Java. I didn't read what steps the government took. A nip in the bud policy should be followed.
What the government tells the people about the progress made is no lie. The facts can be substantiated by statistics. Of course there are still many problems, but we must not forget that problems will always be there. We must be optimistic and find a solution to every problem. Only pessimists see problems in every solution.
Perhaps news about criminals has commercial value, but newspapers should anticipate the effect on the population's minds.
Of course there are setbacks, there are failures. The government shouldn't hide them, but should be able to balance the bad and the good.
The government, knowing what is wrong, should work hard to correct the problems. At the moment, the government leaves the impression that it found a scapegoat in the activities of ex- communist party members.
There are so many things that can counter the bad things, which sometimes are blown up out of proportion by people who do not like the government. A responsible Pancasila press should not fall into this trap and help maintain a nice and warm atmosphere by writing balanced reports. Bad things should not be hidden, people should know them, but the people should also know that everything isn't black.
SOEGIH ARTO
Jakarta