But, in fact, the black campaigns will raise the electability of the attacked rivals."
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Many electronic, print, and online media publications are biased and even help publicize black or negative campaigns in the current presidential race between Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa and Joko Widodo-M. Jusuf Kalla pairs.

Observers criticized the media for not maximally facilitating the public to make the best choice. The media do not provide adequate information with regard to candidates capacities, vision, mission and their plan of action to tackle the nations problems.

"The basic function of the media is to assist the public and provide them with substantial information on the presidential and vice presidential candidates. But, some media outlets did not play this role maximally," Erwan Agus Purwanto of the Yoyakarta-based Gajah Mada University stated on Wednesday.

Erwan emphasized that the public needs to learn and explore the capabilities of the candidates. The media should reflect this information objectively and comprehensively in their publications. Regrettably, many publications failed to do this job. They are even inclined to showcase black and negative campaigns by supporters of the two presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs.

The public, therefore, should be able to hold various media publications to task regarding the information they provide on presidential and vice presidential candidates.

"The public must cleverly filter the information provided by the media in the current election campaigns. They should be selective in taking media reference, let alone if the media concerned have indications they are biased to certain candidates," Erwan remarked in Yogyakarta on Wednesday.

According to Erwan, the public are now able to identify several media outlets, which are clearly biased to a certain candidate, and thus, they will be able to map out the information easily.

"There are a number of television stations that are explicitly taking sides with certain candidates. The public can easily see this," he pointed out.

Thus, Erwan is of the viewpoint that the public must be able to identify the basic potentials of the candidates for handling Indonesias problems in the future, such as the challenge of the ASEAN Economic Community, and how far can the candidates overcome conflict, intolerance and negotiate with foreign parties.

"This should be the focus of attention," he asserted.

In this regard, sociologist Nia Elvina of the Jakarta-based National University (Unas) stressed that the success teams of the presidential candidates must focus their campaigns on the basis of willingness to introduce the candidates vision and mission or the programs that they will carry out when elected as the president.

"It is the vision and mission that the public will use to judge the activities of the President later on. It will also serve as a basis for the public to re-elect the incumbent if the President nominates himself as a candidate for the next term," noted Nia Elvina, who is also a member of the Village Study Researchers Group of the University of Indonesia (UI).

"But, I see what happens now is that there is a tendency where both camps of the candidates have launched unhealthy campaigns," Nia added.

Nia said that campaigns, based on vision and mission, will facilitate the public to make the best choice to vote because they hope that the candidates they choose will be able to meet their expectations.

"So, both camps should not trade accusations with each other without objective facts as what has happened now," she stressed, adding that campaigning of this kind should be immediately stopped.

After all, baseless slanders and black and negative campaigns will not benefit the country in its efforts to build democracy and neither will it provide correct information to the public.

Black campaigns can even adversely benefit rivals. According to communications expert, Prof. Dr Alo Liliweri of the University of Nusa Cendana (Undana), black campaigns launched through the social media will adversely boost the electability of rival candidates.

In this context, black campaigns addressed to the Prabowo-Hatta duo or against the Jokowi-JK pair will raise their electability.

The Prabowo-Hatta team is nominated by the alliance of the Greater Indonesia Movement (Gerindra), the National Mandate Party (PAN), the United Development Party (PPP), the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the Golkar Party, and the Crescent and Star Party (PBB).

The Joko Widodo-Jusuf Kalla (Jokowi-JK) pair is nominated by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), the National Democrat Party (NasDem), the National Awakening Party (PKB), and the Peoples Conscience Party (Hanura).

Alo stated that in terms of political ethics, black campaigning against a rival by the support of a camp is not the right way to increase the electability of its candidate. Yet, black campaign is inevitable for those who are keen to bring victory to their candidates at any cost.

They try all means in line with the information and technological progress now available. Social media, among others, has become one of the key ways to propagate black and negative campaigns.

"In the current presidential election, we have only two presidential and vice presidential pairs to vote for to choose as the leaders of our nation. Therefore, the supporters of both sides exert every means to bring victory to their candidates," Dr Alo Liliweri added.

Yet, black campaign can adversely raise the electability of rivals. Alo Liliweri cited two examples of black campaigns. The first example was the accusation by former chief of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) A.M. Hendropriyono against Prabowo. Hendropriyono said Prabowo, who is the former commandant general of the Armys elite Special Force (Kopassus), suffered from psychopathic and mental disorders.

The other example, Alo pointed out was the negative campaign addressed to Joko Widodo who was said to be a Chinese descendant with the name, Heribertus Joko Widodo.

"The camps of the two candidates launched black campaigns for character assassinations of their rival candidates. But, in fact, the black campaigns will raise the electability of the attacked rivals," he reiterated.

The same viewpoint was also shared by Idrus Marham, the secretary general of the Golkar Party, one of the alliance members of the parties supporting the Prabowo-Hatta team.

With regard to negative campaigns, Idrus emphasized that details of a document being leaked out by certain circles confirming Prabowo Subiantos dismissal from the military can even raise the publics empathy since he has explained his past encounters with human rights issues.

"Mr Prabowo adequately explained the human rights matter during the first presidential candidate debate on Monday. So, the leakage of the document on the recommendation of the militarys Officers Honorary Council (DKP) for his dismissal from the military in 1998 can raise empathy and sympathy from the public," Idrus stated on Wednesday.

The DKP had issued a recommendation for the dismissal of Prabowo, who was then a commandant general of the Armys elite Special Force (Kopassus), at a time when he was considered responsible for the disappearance of activists during the reform movement in 1998.

According to Idrus, presidential candidate Prabowo had claimed responsibility, adding that he had made a commitment to uphold human rights.

"Mr Prabowo explained about the human rights issue and expressed his commitment to upholding it. He even acknowledged he was responsible. I think that is extraordinary," Idrus added.
(T.A014/INE/KR-BSR/O001)

Reporter: Andi Abdussalam
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2014