UI Academic: Digital Ecosystem Poses Challenge to Public Deliberation
Ummi Salamah, a lecturer in Communication Science at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, University of Indonesia (FISIP UI), has highlighted the digital ecosystem as a significant challenge in strengthening the quality of public deliberation in Indonesia.
According to a statement from FISIP UI, Ummi believes that political mediatisation, the concentration of media ownership, and the design of digital platforms that tend to prioritise emotion can negatively affect the quality of public deliberation. Consequently, the principle of ‘musyawarah-mufakat’ (deliberation for consensus) needs to be transformed for the digital ecosystem.
These views were presented during a book review of “Redesigning Indonesian Democracy: Reactualising the Principle of Musyawarah-Mufakat,” organised by FISIP UI alongside the Culture Commission of the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (AIPI) and Pustaka Obor Indonesia at the FISIP UI Campus in Depok.
The discussion brought together interdisciplinary perspectives from political science, anthropology, and communication to discuss the relevance of the ‘musyawarah-mufakat’ principle in contemporary Indonesian democratic practice.
From an anthropological perspective, FISIP UI Anthropology lecturer Imam Ardianto proposed the idea of “provincialising democracy,” which positions modern liberal democracy as just one form of democracy rather than the sole standard. He argued that democratic practices must be interpreted based on the social and cultural context of the community.
Imam also warned of the potential for “elite capture,” where deliberative forums are dominated by elite groups if deliberation is not accompanied by a more equitable distribution of power.
Meanwhile, Hans Antlöv, Senior Advisor at FHI360, emphasised the importance of strengthening civic power to ensure that ‘musyawarah’ does not merely serve as a consultative forum without the ability to influence public decisions. He highlighted the community development planning forum (Musrenbang), particularly at the village level, as an existing space for deliberation in Indonesia that can still be strengthened.
The discussion also generated several ideas to strengthen deliberative democracy, including the revitalisation of Musrenbang with independent and trained facilitators, strengthening the link between deliberation outcomes and legislative agendas, and developing prototype digital deliberation platforms.
Furthermore, strengthening government public communication regulations was deemed necessary to support a healthier deliberative space.
FISIP UI is encouraging Indonesian democratic practices that do not rely solely on electoral mechanisms but are also deliberative, inclusive, and rooted in the social and cultural context of the people.
The book “Redesigning Indonesian Democracy: Reactualising the Principle of Musyawarah-Mufakat” is part of a trilogy published by the AIPI Culture Commission in collaboration with the Agency for the Development of Pancasila Ideology (BPIP) and the Obor Indonesia Foundation. The book was compiled from a series of focus group discussions involving various regions and universities, including Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Makassar, and Ambon.