Violence Tradition

Kompas/Heru Sri Kumoro

Murals of Gus Dur or KH Abdurrahman Wahid and anti-violence activist Munir Said Thalib adorn the wall on Jalan Halim Perdana Kusuma, Benda, Tangerang City, Banten, on Sunday (26/4/2020).

To the world, we frequently introduce ourselves as a friendly, tolerant, smiling and friendly nation. However, in the last few weeks, several disturbances and acts of violence have emerged in the community.

The occurrence of a number of acts of violence in the country above reminds us of a long article written by Elizabeth Fuller Collins in the Asian Survey titled Indonesia: A Violent Culture? (2002).

In the introduction, the article quoted a statement from a military figure who is now a minister in Joko Widodo\'s cabinet, as saying that "Indonesian culture is violent". He reinforced his statement, among other things, by tracing the origin of the word amok, which comes from the lingua franca in this archipelagic country.

Of course, the above assumption cannot be simply ignored. Mentioning that a nation has a violent culture is completely different from claiming that there is cultural violence or elements of violence from a particular culture. As Johan Galtung (1990) clarified, the first term assumes that the entire cultural domain is violent. The second indicates the presence of violence in certain cultures.

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The above article actually does not want to affirm that Indonesia has a violent culture, but instead shows that various acts of violence that occur in this society are often created for certain political interests.

Many have an interest in the existence of these militias or paramilitaries and are reluctant to accept the argument that maintaining such groups is the same as maintaining a culture of violence in society.

However, there is indeed a tradition of violence in our society. One of them is the existence of several militia and paramilitary groups that are tolerated by part of the community and the government elite. The paramilitaries have many variations. There are those that are affiliated with the army or police, there are some that are affiliated with political parties, and there are others that are affiliated with religious mass organizations. The various paramilitary groups are created, maintained, and sometimes used to carry out acts of violence so that the actors who ask for them can be free from responsibility for the violence that occurs. Many have an interest in the existence of these militias or paramilitaries and are reluctant to accept the argument that maintaining such groups is the same as maintaining a culture of violence in society.

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When they are still small, the paramilitary groups can be controlled by their masters. However, some of these groups have now become large and can no longer be controlled by those who were involved in carrying out their birth. Like Frankenstein, the paramilitary groups often slap their faces, humiliate, and want to kill their masters.

How can the process of an act of violence turn into a habitus in society? The existence of these paramilitaries in Indonesian history can indeed be traced back to the time of the war of independence with various laskar or militia groups that waged guerrilla warfare against the colonialists.

KOMPAS/HENDRA A SETYAWAN

An anti-violence mural against mothers and children can be seen in the Gandaria area, Jakarta, on Tuesday (5/3/2019).

Different from the independence period, when the atmosphere is safe, certain laskar or paramilitaries even intimidate the people more frequently than create calm. They provide more protection and security for masters or those who pay for it and sacrifice the sense of security for the general public.

This is done, for example, by closing roads, attacking places of worship of religious minorities, and threats of physical violence, even murder of someone. The existence of paramilitary guard houses or posts appears to be greater in number than that of the police post and seems to be the ruler in a certain area.

In order to legitimize the violence being committed, some groups wrap their actions in the spirit of nationalism, while others cover it with religious arguments. With this legitimacy model, the violent actions or behavior that are carried out will be seen or may be felt as the right actions, or at least, are not considered as mistakes. This legitimacy continues to be instilled in their members so that it becomes part of their belief.

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The existence of these paramilitaries is often seen as a general norm or something that is normal, common, and even necessary. Of course, the levels of intimidation and violence that arise from their presence vary. There are those who are extreme in assuming that it is permissible to damage other people\'s properties if they sell haram goods.

There are also those who believe that it is permissible to intimidate those of different religions to protect adherents of their religion.

By using religious legitimacy, some believe that violence can be lawful. There are also those who believe that it is permissible to intimidate those of different religions to protect adherents of their religion.

The mistake of some community elites in relation to paramilitary groups is, as Ian Wilson (2014) said, "they publicly condemn the violence they commit, but secretly glorify and forge alliances with their leaders".

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Finally, if violence can turn into a tradition, especially when it is institutionalized and legitimized as something true, on the other hand, a tradition or culture of peace can become a habitus in society if it continues to be encouraged.

This, among other things, is done by bringing every problem to the law and not taking justice into your own hands. The task of the government is to strengthen law enforcement and create a clean judiciary. Otherwise, the tradition of violence and vigilante will continue to find their place in society.

KOMPAS/YUNIADHI AGUNG

Ahmad Najib Burhani

AHMAD NAJIB BURHANI, Research Professor at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI)