Example of Editorial Text in Newspaper
The following is an editorial from Koran Tempo on the 27 August 2020 edition regarding the plan to reopen cinemas in Jakarta in the midst of the ongoing pandemic.
Dangers of Cinema Opening
Introduction to Issues (Thesis)
The granting of permits to open cinemas by the DKI Jakarta government is truly beyond reason. There is no urgency to provide such leeway when the Covid-19 outbreak is not under control.
Submission of Opinion (Argument)
In the last two weeks, the average number of new Covid-19 patients in the capital was nearly 600 people every day. That number increased dramatically compared to the data at the end of last July, when the addition of the number of new patients was still in the 400s. In the last two weeks, the positive ratio in Jakarta is also more than 10 percent. That is, there are ten positive people out of every hundred people tested for a swab. This situation is worse than last month when the positive ratio in Jakarta was at the World Health Organization (WHO) safe threshold of 5 percent.
Therefore, it is difficult to understand the reason why DKI Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan has allowed cinemas to reopen immediately. Indeed, since it was closed in March, thousands of cinema employees have been laid off. There are 343 theaters with 1,756 screens in Indonesia—more than 50 percent of which are in Jakarta and its surroundings. The closing of these cinemas caused the film industry to come to a halt. The shopping center is also empty of visitors. However, economic reasons should not be used as a justification for ignoring considerations of public health and safety.
Governor Anies reasoned that it was possible to open cinemas as long as health protocols were adhered to. In addition to the limited number of viewers entering the cinema, the seating position of moviegoers can be adjusted, just like passengers on an airplane. This is an easy excuse to break because opening a cinema is like inviting a new crowd. The risk of transmitting the coronavirus can soar when the gathering points for residents are reopened.
The statement from the Head of the Expert Team for the Task Force for the Acceleration of Handling Covid-19, Wiku Adisasmito, to support the opening of cinemas is even more absurd. According to him, letting people watch cinemas can increase their immunity. This kind of explanation sounds more like the government's desperation in controlling the transmission of Covid-19. It is as if the Task Force has run out of ideas to suppress the pace of this pandemic in Indonesia.
Reaffirmation
Governor Anies and his staff must not give up in the face of the coronavirus attack. One of Indonesia's main weaknesses in the Covid-19 transmission control program is contact tracing of positive patients. Currently, the government's capacity in tracing patient contact networks is still below WHO standards. The Ministry of Health protocol requires 80 percent of all patient contacts to be traced and isolated within three days after confirmation of the patient's status. If this is not done, it is impossible for the spread of this virus to be suppressed to a minimum.
Instead of being busy opening cinemas, the DKI Jakarta government should spend a budget to assist the Health Service and the Task Force to increase tracking capacity. Without it, any strict social restrictions would be useless. If the outbreak is under control, the economy will surely recover.
Sample Editorial Text on Health
The following is Koran Tempo's editorial on the 10 September 2020 edition with adjustments.
Don't Just Rely on Vaccines
Introduction to Issues (Thesis)
The government's move in forming the National Team for Acceleration of Covid-19 Vaccine Development last week showed that the government relied on the availability of vaccines as a way out of this pandemic. The team consisting of several ministers, research institutes, universities, and the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency (BPOM) will serve until 31 December next year.
Submission of Opinion (Argument)
However, there are several fundamental problems with this government policy. First, its duties and functions may overlap with the Covid-19 Handling and National Economic Recovery Committee, which the President has established. Although they are still jointly led by the Coordinating Minister for the Economy Airlangga Hartarto, the existence of this team has the potential to hamper the bureaucracy. Moreover, the community has not seen the real results of the committee's work in the field.
Second, the existence of the team also has the potential to clash with the tasks of the Covid-19 Research and Innovation Consortium led by the Ministry of Research and Technology or the National Research and Innovation Agency. In addition to producing rapid tests (covid rapid tests) and ventilators, the consortium is also developing a Red and White vaccine with the Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology. In fact, the government could simply assign this consortium to carry out its instructions regarding the acceleration of vaccine development.
In addition, the scope of this team is not very clear. Making a qualified vaccine certainly requires a lot of time and should not be rushed. For example, people certainly don't want to accelerate the development of the Merah Putih vaccine; instead, it triggers questions from the global research world about its credibility, which even the government doesn't seem to believe in, and forms another team to do it.
Then, the government should be very aware that the third phase of clinical trials is the most important stage of vaccine or drug design. This last phase of clinical trials cannot be rushed. AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford were even forced to stop their clinical trial when they found that participants in a clinical trial in the UK were experiencing serious side effects. So, I don't think there will be much that the national team formed by the President can do.
Reaffirmation
Instead of relying solely on vaccines, the government should improve the capacity to test and track suspect patients. Through various health service centers, the government can actually improve the quality of patient treatment and the readiness of medical personnel so that the death rate for COVID-19 patients does not continue to increase.
Without a concerted effort involving all elements of society, the hope of only one solution could lead to new problems, especially if the vaccine development time is much longer than what was promised by the government. The government cannot store all eggs in one basket; holistic and strict outbreak control efforts must continue to be carried out from various angles.
Example of an Editorial Text about Politics
The example below is an editorial on politics taken from the 09 September 2020 edition of Media Indonesia newspaper.
Pilkada without Identity Politics
Introduction to Issues (Thesis)
The election of regional heads (pilkada) has never been separated from the practice of money politics, identity politics, spreading hoaxes, hate speech, and black campaigning. Even if the five of them do not appear at the same time, at least two democratic parties will be held, namely money politics and identity politics.
Submission of Opinion (Argument)
From the practice of identity politics, hoaxes, hate speech, and black campaigns as their derivatives can also be realized. Identity politics relies on SARA (ethnicity, religion, race, and intergroup). These attributes are actually not related to the quality of potential leaders. However, it is easy to use to obscure the selector from objectivity.
The most extreme impact of identity politics is the division in society that causes social conflicts. The cohesion built by the spirit of Bhinneka Tunggal Ika falls down, so it takes a long time to recover.
Money politics and identity politics are like a corrupt mentality in a democracy that is so deeply rooted that it is difficult to eradicate them. However, that doesn't mean we should give up and let it go.
Law Number 10 of 2016 concerning Regional Elections has regulated the prohibition on the practice of identity politics. Article 69 letter (b) states that campaigns are prohibited from insulting a person, religion, ethnicity, race, group of candidates for governor and or political parties.
Article 69 letter (c) also regulates the prohibition to conduct campaigns in the form of inciting, slandering, pitting political parties, individuals, and or community groups.
Strict sanctions are also regulated in Article 187 paragraph (2). Any person who intentionally violates the provisions on the prohibition of the implementation of the campaign as referred to in Article 69 and so on shall be punished with imprisonment for a minimum of three months or a maximum of 18 months and or a fine of at least Rp. 600,000 or a maximum of Rp. 6,000,000.
Then why is identity politics still rife and even brutal, like in the 2017 DKI Jakarta Pilkada and 2019 Election? Of course, just making rules is not enough. Law enforcement is needed to be able to suppress practices that tarnish democracy. Sanctions should not only decorate the rule sheet until it is economical to drop.
These are all ongoing work of election administrators and law enforcement officials. It also requires the participation of the community to participate in monitoring and self-awareness.
The 2020 Pilkada with a vote that falls on 09 December is not only about money politics and identity politics. The COVID-19 pandemic has pushed into the top position of election vulnerability. This means that the work of organizing and supervising the elections is getting tougher.
On the other hand, voters are gaining momentum in choosing candidates for regional leaders who are most qualified to deal with crises such as disease outbreaks. Candidates must come up with innovative ideas, especially to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.
It is the voter's job to study the track records of the pairs of candidates and listen to their ideas. Instead of busying themselves with SARA-based incitement, and what's even worse: spreading the word.
Reaffirmation
The 2020 Pilkada must be free from identity politics that can endanger unity and integrity. Therefore, the use of language, narratives, and symbols that endanger the unity and integrity of the community must not be allowed.
Sample Editorial Text about Education
The following is an example of an editorial text about education taken from an editorial in the 10 August 2020 edition of the Tempo newspaper with adjustments.
Don't Bet the Fate of Students
Introduction to Issues (Thesis)
Even in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government is still obliged to fulfill the rights of the nation's children to obtain an education. Even so, the government should not arbitrarily open schools based on the epidemic status of an area.
Submission of Opinion (Argument)
Last Friday, Minister of Education and Culture Nadiem Makarim allowed schools in the yellow zone to hold offline (face-to-face) learning. The Ministry of Education and Culture previously allowed schools in the green zone to be opened in stages with strict health protocols.
If not implemented carefully, permits based on the area's status can be disastrous. This is because the red, orange, yellow, or green zones are not strict partitions. As long as population movement between regional zones is still free, all zones remain vulnerable to contracting COVID-19.
Permission for face-to-face learning should be given based on the readiness of each school to carry out health protocols properly. The benchmark is not only the availability of transmission prevention facilities. Schools must also ensure that all teachers, staff, students, and parents of students do not have a history of interaction with suspects who have been exposed to the virus. This is not an easy thing.
Minister Nadiem's confession that PJJ or distance learning during the pandemic is not effective is not something that is made up. Many students do not have smartphones and internet access in various areas, especially in remote areas. Not a few teachers are not ready to teach remotely.
The COVID-19 pandemic has indeed shown again how lame Indonesia's infrastructure is. Previously, the OECD or Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development had released data that only 34 percent of Indonesia's population was connected to the internet. The Indonesian Internet Service Provider Association survey in 2018 also revealed similar results. In Java, more than 55.7% of the population can access the internet. Meanwhile, in Kalimantan, only 6.6% are connected to the internet. But all these facts are not a reason to loosen the permit to open schools.
During the pandemic, which is still raging, the government should not make a bet by expanding the area where face-to-face learning is allowed. The policy of opening schools in the yellow zone without guaranteeing their safety will only give the impression that the government has given up hope.
Reaffirmation
The government should try harder to find a way out in overcoming barriers to online learning, for example, by providing adequate allowances and facilities for underprivileged teachers and students. During this pandemic, the role of teachers in saving children's future is as important as the role of medical personnel in saving patients' lives.
While optimizing distance learning, the government should also encourage the family as one of the main places of education. The pandemic has forced parents to stay at home with their children longer. This is an opportunity that can be used by the government to invite parents to intensively guide their own children.
After the epidemic has passed, the government must also be more serious in building equitable education infrastructure. Because only through equal access to education can all the nation's children maintain hope for a better future.
Example of Editorial Text about Environment
The following is an example of an editorial text about the environment that can be disturbed due to sea reclamation (backfilling the sea to make it land). An example of this is an editorial published in the Koran Kompas edition of 13 July 2020 with the author's adjustment.
Ancol Sea Reclamation Hot Ball
Introduction to Issues (Thesis)
Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan should have given a proper argument before issuing a reclamation permit for the Ancol recreation area. The decision, which was released at the end of February, reneged on his political promises during the campaign. This decision also threatens the environment around the reclamation area and violates the regional and spatial planning regulations.
Anies issued a decree granting permission to expand Dufan and the Eastern Ancol Dreamland to 35 and 120 hectares, respectively. Recently, after the pros and cons emerged, Anies stated that the decision was a legal requirement to utilize the land due to the accumulation of mud from dredging rivers and reservoirs in Jakarta, which became shallow due to sedimentation.
Submission of Opinion (Argument)
The reason for utilizing the results of the accumulation of mud is understandable and quite reasonable. The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government cannot allow the 3.4 million cubic meters of mud which has now turned into a 20-hectare land in East Ancol. Abandoning semi-finished land due to mud compaction will only worsen the environment around the north coast of Jakarta.
It's just that the use of the land should still refer to the spatial and regional planning of DKI Jakarta. The plan is that the expansion of the Ancol area, which is 72 percent owned by the DKI government, will not be included in the existing Spatial Regulation. As a rule, the land that has been formed cannot be used as an excuse to expand the Ancol area.
Anies argued that the purpose of the Ancol expansion was different from the reclamation project in Jakarta Bay. In addition to providing free beach access to the public, he also stated that his party would build a Museum of the Prophet and Islamic civilization in the area to be reclaimed. However, the governor still has to provide arguments regarding the impact of reclamation on the environment.
In fact, one of Anies' political promises to win votes that can then defeat Basuki is to refuse reclamation. This political promise has now been abandoned on the grounds that "it has already been built."
Reaffirmation
So that the Ancol reclamation will not cause problems in the future, Anies should revoke the governor's decision that he has published. After that, first, submit a draft regional regulation regarding detailed spatial and regional plans governing the expansion of Ancol, complete with efforts to avoid the impact of environmental damage. Discussion of the regulation must be transparent so as not to trigger new turmoil.
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