Say no to vigilantism
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Isn't it amazing how the spin doctors in the Indonesian army have turned public opinion so quickly and made heroes out of the 11 soldiers whom the military say took part in the cold-blooded murder of four people in a Yogyakarta penitentiary last month?
More and more people are now speaking up in support of the killings. The four slain men were alleged to be thugs, or preman in Indonesian. They had it coming, so the argument goes. Now the public want an all-out war against all preman, a virtual carte blanche for more vigilante-type killings.
Just days after the announcement by the army that 11 members of its elite Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus) took part in the killing, the real issue of human rights violations and abuse of power by our soldiers is virtually forgotten. Thanks to the spin doctors, the media latched on to what they claim to be the greater threat to the public: the menacing premanism.
The way the army announced the results of its investigation, it should have been a clear-cut case of murder and abuse of power. The army said the soldiers were avenging the death of a colleague at the hands of these four preman. They had acted “spontaneously” and “valiantly” in “upholding the name of their corps”, so goes the official explanation.
The way public opinion is easily manipulated indicates the extent of the preman problem. Many people live in constant fear of these thugs, who roam freely, tormenting and terrorising others, and police appear to be completely helpless. Many of those who have felt the wrath of preman would happily give their deathwish list to anyone willing to take up the challenge. To them, the Kopassus 11 are heroes.
Experience tells us that once you tolerate vigilantism, it will quickly spin out of control. In the 1980s, Suharto encouraged the killing of suspected hardcore criminals and repeat offenders in a covert military operation by the so-called Petrus (mysterious shooters). Premanism subsided, but many of the victims of Petrus were ordinary people who had nothing to do with underworld crime.
Public support for the killing may be a mitigating factor when the 11 appear before the tribunal. But it is setting the nation on an even more dangerous course, for it encourages vigilantism.
Instead of playing with fire, the army should be worried about restoring the image of Kopassus and taking steps to rein in trigger-happy soldiers.
What about premanism? In democracy, you don’t fight fire with fire. You deal with thuggery through the strong arm of the law. Police were already on the right track in arresting the four suspects, but when the military stepped in, who could really stop them?
We have to give democracy and due process of law a chance. We have to say no to both premanism and vigilantism.
