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Politicization of Law

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  At three o’clock in the morning, a loud knock echoed through Indra Wijaya’s apartment in South Jakarta. “Mr. Indra Wijaya, open the door! This is the police!” Indra woke up, his heart pounding. Beside him, his wife Rina sat up, startled. “What’s going on, Mas?” she whispered anxiously. Indra took a deep breath, got up, and walked to the door. As soon as he opened it, several plainclothes officers stormed in. “You are under arrest for alleged corruption of social aid funds,” one of the officers declared, showing a warrant. Corruption? Indra’s body trembled. He was a law scholar turned anti-corruption activist. He had never touched public money—not a single cent. “I’ve never done that! This must be a mistake!” But the police ignored him. His hands were handcuffed, and within seconds, he was dragged outside. Outside, journalists were already waiting—as if his arrest had been staged for public spectacle. Camera flashes blinded him. Rina could only cry as her husband was taken away in...
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Demonstrant 5

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  Nadya sat in front of her laptop screen, reading the latest news about the student movement that was facing increasing pressure from various sides. Online discussions were heating up, and some of her activist friends began receiving intimidation from anonymous accounts. The hashtag #ShameOnYou, which had once trended widely on Twitter, was now being flooded with counter-narratives from buzzers trying to sway public opinion — portraying the student movement as nothing more than a political tool of certain elites. Meanwhile, on her campus, Sidra, a lecturer and former activist, continued to provide critical insights to her students. In a seminar room discussion, she reminded them that history had shown how student movements often faced repression and information distortion. “Back in 1998,” Sidra said, “the government used print and television media to control public opinion. Now, in the digital era, we face a new challenge — an information war in cyberspace.” Nadya began to realize...
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Demonstrant 4

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  Demonstrations under the hashtag #IndonesiaGelap (DarkIndonesia) continued to unfold, voicing issues of injustice, rising basic commodity prices, and corruption across various sectors of government. However, mainstream media began to play its part by reporting the student protests in a biased manner. Several national television stations only showed clips highlighting tensions between students and the police, without covering the actual demands they carried. Some media even labeled the demonstrations as anarchic acts “driven by certain interests.” On social media, the hashtag #ShameOnYou began trending on X (formerly Twitter), as a form of criticism against media outlets accused of being biased and unfairly portraying the student movement. Students and digital activists started sharing original videos from the ground, revealing that the protests were peaceful before provocations came from certain groups. Meanwhile, Nadya and her friends in Malang continued to clarify the truth thr...
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Demonstran 3

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  After returning from the village, Nadya began to take her father’s advice more seriously. Arif, who had devoted himself to education in rural areas, understood the importance of having academics and educators who fought within the urban system. For Arif, change could not only be achieved from the margins but also from within the institutions themselves. “You can be more useful if you stay in the city, Nadya. You could become a teaching assistant, continue your master’s degree, and one day, be a permanent lecturer. That way, you can educate more people and bring change within the system,” said Arif as they talked in Nadya’s rented house in Malang. Nadya understood what her father meant. Devotion was not only about going to villages or joining street protests. There were many ways to fight for one’s ideals, including through academia. At her campus, Malang State University, she began to take part in more academic activities—assisting professors in research and volunteering as a tea...
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Demonstrant 2

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 Jakarta, May 1998. Thousands of university students from across the country gathered around the Parliament building. Arif and his group of students from Malang arrived in the capital after a long train ride, packed with waves of demonstrators from all corners of Indonesia. They joined the massive movement demanding reform. Tear gas, warning shots, and clashes with the police became daily scenes. Yet, their spirit of struggle never faded. In the middle of the crowd, Arif witnessed history being made. Reform finally came—Suharto stepped down—but the struggle was far from over. After the movement, Arif completed his studies, then chose to return to his village, where he built a school and distanced himself from the noise of politics. Twenty-five years later, that same spirit of struggle lived on—but in a different form. Nadya, Arif’s daughter, was now a student at the State University of Malang, majoring in Indonesian Language Education. Although she didn’t live in a repressive era l...
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Demonstrant 1

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  In a small village on the slopes of Mount Slamet, Arif sits on the veranda of his wooden house, gazing out at the expanse of yellowing rice fields. The tranquil afternoon is accompanied only by the sound of crickets and the trickling of water from a small ditch beside the house. Since deciding to leave the city and settle in this village, his life has been far removed from the hustle and bustle that was once so integral to his daily life. Now, he spends most of his time teaching village children at a simple school he founded with several local residents. However, despite having long since left the world of student activism, Arif continues to follow socio-political developments. He no longer reads print newspapers as he once did. Now, his phone is constantly lit with notifications from online news portals, discussions in Telegram groups, and YouTube channels discussing current political events. The world has changed, but social inequality and injustice remain as persistent as ever...
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JEJAK SANG GURU 32

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MALAM DI BAWAH LANGIT DESA Setelah sekian lama menunggu, Hasan akhirnya bisa merasakan kembali kehangatan keluarga yang utuh. Kakaknya sudah pulang, duduk di antara mereka, berbagi cerita tentang kehidupan di kota. Meski rumah mereka masih sama—berdinding kayu, berlantai tegel dingin, dan diterangi lampu petromak—suasana malam ini terasa berbeda. Ada rasa tenang yang sudah lama tidak Hasan rasakan. Menikmati Makan Malam Bersama Di meja makan yang sederhana, mereka menikmati hidangan yang disiapkan Bu Siti: sayur lodeh, ikan asin, dan tempe goreng. Hasan makan dengan lahap, sesekali melirik kakaknya yang kini terlihat lebih dewasa. "Kak, kau tidak pernah pulang, apa di kota terlalu sibuk?" tanya Hasan sambil mengunyah tempe. Kakaknya tersenyum, menyendok nasi ke piringnya. "Bukan begitu, San. Aku memang sibuk dengan kuliah dan kerja. Tapi aku selalu ingin pulang. Hanya saja, waktunya belum tepat." Ustaz Mahfud mengangguk pelan. "Yang penting sekarang kau sudah d...
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JEJAK SANG GURU 31

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 MENANTI KEHADIRAN KAKAK Hasan merasa hari-hari berjalan lebih lambat sejak menerima kabar bahwa kakaknya akan pulang. Setiap pagi, ia selalu bertanya pada ibunya, "Bu, kapan Kakak pulang?" dan setiap kali pula ibunya menjawab dengan senyuman sabar, "Sebentar lagi, San. Sabar ya." Namun, bagi Hasan, waktu seakan bergerak lebih lambat dari biasanya. Pagi yang Sibuk di Desa Pagi itu, seperti biasa, Hasan bangun lebih awal. Dari bilik kayu kamar tidurnya, ia mendengar suara ayam berkokok dan dentingan panci dari dapur. Bu Siti pasti sudah menyiapkan sarapan. Aroma nasi hangat bercampur dengan wangi kopi menyebar ke seluruh rumah. Hasan segera beranjak, mencuci muka di sumur belakang rumah, lalu duduk di lantai kayu dapur sambil mengipasi piringnya agar nasi tidak terlalu panas. "San, nanti pulang sekolah jangan main dulu, bantu Ibu di rumah. Kita harus bersih-bersih sebelum Kakak datang," kata Bu Siti sambil menuangkan teh hangat ke dalam cangkir. Hasan menga...
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