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Amending the Terrorism Law, safeguarding the Republic
Terrorism has become a latent danger and threat to national integrity.
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Showing sympathy: University students joining with the Indonesia Muslim Students Movement (PMII) attend a rally at Simpang Lima Gumul Monument in Kediri, East Java, on May 13, to show their solidarity to victims of suicide bombings in Surabaya, East Java.. (Antara/Prasetia Fauzani)
T
he recent consecutive acts of terrorism in several regions across the country have truly shattered and torn the collective emotion of the nation. We were all caught unaware. Within hours of the first bombing, Indonesia bitterly returned to the global spotlight with yet another terrorist attack that was reportedly connected to the Islamic State (IS) network.
This bloody tragedy seemingly emphasized the fact that the government is in a state of emergency concerning terrorism. The state must never lose and falter in the face of terrorists who desire for chaos and fear to grip the nation. The state must be present and protect its citizens, as well as reassert its own existence.
Cracking down on terrorism, which has cast a shadow over Indonesia for some time, is not the sole realm of the police. It is time that all parties relinquish their sectoral and institutional egos for the sake of larger interests. Everyone should come to an agreement that terrorism is a real threat in the midst of our civic life and in times to come. Thus, we all bear the same responsibility: to safeguard the country against the menace of terrorism.
Law enforcement against acts of terror should also be consistent. The primary hurdle here lies in the revision of Terrorism Law No. 15/2003, which is being debated at the House of Representatives. The new Terrorism Law needs to be passed without any more delays in order to provide a more proactive and anticipative legal umbrella for terrorism eradication.
