BANDA ACEH | ACEH INFO – A number of organizations and institutions in Aceh agreed to form the Kawai Haba Demokrasi Aceh Coalition, to fight against information disruption in the 2024 regional elections.
The declaration of this coalition took place in a focused discussion facilitated by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Banda Aceh City at the Grand Nanggroe Hotel, Saturday, August 3, 2024.
Chairman of AJI Banda Aceh, Reza Munawir, said that the implementation of the 2024 simultaneous regional elections in Aceh has the potential to be overshadowed by the spread of hoax information. This causes misunderstanding and even triggers quarrels in the community.
He considers this coalition important for multi-sectoral collaboration in combating the spread of hoaxes and facilitating clarification of information related to the implementation of democratic parties.
Thus, the people of Aceh can obtain credible information and not get caught up in the confusion of misleading information.
The Chairman of the Aceh Independent Election Commission (KIP), Saiful, welcomed and supported the presence of this coalition to prevent hoaxes that have the potential to increase ahead of the elections.
“Learning from the experience of previous elections, the spread of hoaxes has proven to bring chaos, division, quarrels, and even hostility in the community. So it is important to anticipate hoax issues in society through fact-checking activities,” he said.
Aceh Nahdlatul Ulama (PWNU) Regional Administrator, Tgk H Faisal Ali, who is familiarly called Lem Faisal, stated that there is no religious basis, customary context, or legal basis that allows producing and spreading fake news (hoaxes).
“People, especially intellectuals, should see hoaxes as something unclean, so that they are not easily provoked and spread them,” he said.
Because the spread of hoaxes is very dangerous, not only affecting a handful of people but can also destroy society,” he continued.
In accordance with the Fatwa of the Aceh Ulama Consultative Assembly (MPU) Number: 6 of 2018 related to the Spread of Fake News (Hoax) and its impact, it is stated that the law of creating fake news (hoax) and spreading it is haram and contrary to positive law and customary law, “he concluded.
To note, the Kawai Haba Demokrasi Aceh Coalition was formed from a combination of elements of society across professions, ethnicities, and ages with the common goal of guarding the Aceh elections through the delivery of complete information according to facts.
Clarifying the democratic narrative can be done through fact-checking activities that can help people avoid the potential for misinformation, disinformation, and malinformation.
Read more: Adnan NS: Aceh’s Bloody Press History
Misinformation can be defined as the spread of inaccurate information by people who do not know. Disinformation is false information that is deliberately created and spread to deceive and achieve certain goals.
Meanwhile, malinformation is information that can be true but its presentation is shaped in such a way as to harm certain parties.
The Focused Discussion Program Collaboration Against Disinformation Ahead of the 2024 Elections was held in Banda Aceh, Padang, Bandung, Mataram, and Ternate. The community coalition formed in this program is targeted to run for the next 4 months, and is expected to last forever.
The following are the members of the Kawai Haba Demokrasi Aceh Coalition: KIP Aceh, PWNU Aceh, PW Muhammadiyah Aceh, The Leader, Chairman of the Indonesian Cyber Media Association (AMSI) Aceh, Aceh Institute, Mafindo Aceh, Hakka Aceh, Democracy Resilience Youth Coalition, Katahati Institute, MaTA, Human Rights NGO Coalition, Indonesian Television Journalists Association (IJTI), LBH Aceh, Youth ID, Flower Aceh, Women’s Solidarity (SP) Aceh, and Aceh Human Rights NGO Coalition.