Forms Of The Social Media Supervisory Task Force, Bawaslu Ancam Pidanakan Pelaku Black Campaign Participants Elections Through The ITE Law

Photo: Doc. Antara

Chairman of the Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) RI Rahmat Bagja emphasized that social media uploads that have elements of a black campaign or black campaign against election participants can be punished.

This punishment departs from the findings of monitoring the social media monitoring unit (medsos) which will be formed at the beginning of next year.

Bagja said that this criminal sanction has been regulated in Law Number 19 of 2016 concerning Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE).

"If it enters the campaign, it can be criminal. But even if it is not part of the campaign, if it has entered slander, hoaxes, it can be punished. There is an ITE Law. The ITE Law is tougher than the Election Law. Be careful," Bagja told reporters, Sunday, December 18.

Bagja explained that the purpose of establishing the social media supervisory task force was to suppress the escalation of political narratives that smelled of SARA, black campaigns, and hoaxes on social media. Because, this can cause polarization of people who are prone to occur during the election season.

"We hope that these task force friends will be an important point in holding elections in the future, especially in order to avoid polarization again. Or even if it happens, it can be suppressed or predicted, so that it does not then collision so fast in the field," he said.

Bagja emphasized that the social media supervisory task force is not aimed at hindering individual freedom of expression. However, freedom of expression is also limited by existing rules, on social media in particular, to avoid the narrative of SARA to slander.

"Of course it's not happy if people slander each other. Then they attack presidential candidates or legislative candidates, this is the candidate a,b,c. It's not critical, but has dropped, made fake news. Well, that's a problem. That's what was dealt with," explained Bagja.

Previously, Bagja said he would monitor social media to prevent polarization and spread hoaxes. The program will be made so that supervision can run optimally.

"In the future, we want to create a social media surveillance program to reduce tensions over the politicization of SARA, hoaxes, and black campaigns," Bagja said in his remarks at the Bawaslu National Consolidation event, Saturday, December 17.

It is hoped that this program can be run optimally. So that the upcoming elections can run optimally. Bagja detailed that there are 23,897 people who will help Bawaslu carry out their duties.

"It consists of 4,660 female heroines in the election, 19,237 men. We believe that the chairman and members of Bawaslu throughout Indonesia can oversee all stages of the election," continued Bagja.