President Jokowi Criticizes Indonesia's Political Climate
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Kamis, 1 Januari 1970 07:00 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo or Jokowi has strong opinions regarding Indonesia’s political climate that he thinks is becoming unethical and has forgotten about the values of political politeness.
One of the examples he mentioned are the baseless allegations, such as accusations regarding the emergence of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and allegations of being an accomplice to foreigners, which is often issued by a politician to attack their political opponents.
President Jokowi reasons that these political strategies do not showcase a good example towards the society, especially the young generations. Therefore, he urged young generations to imitate politeness in politics.
Read: PKI Would be Crushed if it Reemerges President Jokowi
“There are many political elites that fail to provide a good example,” said President Jokowi during the 2017 National Symposium on Culture that was held on Monday, November 20. “Being ethical in politics, valuing seniority, and how to preserve the values of politeness is the example we need to give to our children.”
Jokowi also gave an example of how current politicians still often publically accuse certain parties of being a foreigner’s puppet and products of the communist party.
“Many people continuously voice anti-foreigner sentiments [and] the rise of communism. Personally, I would beat Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) to the ground if they truly emerged. It’s that simple. There is a clear legal base [about it]. So, why must we dwell on this problem?” said President Jokowi.
The seventh Indonesian President reasoned that young people nowadays are being educated not only by their school teachers or parents but also by social media. Jokowi said that social media also influence aspects such as the economy, politics, or other general social activities that need to be anticipated.
“Our character as a nation can erode if this is not anticipated by preparing our Indonesian character values through the correct stages,” said President Jokowi.
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