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'Turn Back Crime' sells but remains unknown
Designer Oki makes finishing touches to his Turn Back Crime T-shirts at a workshop in Penggilingan, East Jakarta, on Feb
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Designer Oki makes finishing touches to his Turn Back Crime T-shirts at a workshop in Penggilingan, East Jakarta, on Feb. 25. More than 10,000 of the T-shirts were ordered by the Litongnihu Police in North Sumatra. Each T-shirt costs around Rp 200,000.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama) (JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
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span class="caption">Designer Oki makes finishing touches to his Turn Back Crime T-shirts at a workshop in Penggilingan, East Jakarta, on Feb. 25. More than 10,000 of the T-shirts were ordered by the Litongnihu Police in North Sumatra. Each T-shirt costs around Rp 200,000.(JP/Wendra Ajistyatama)
'Turn Back Crime' has become the new slogan of the police, especially general crimes units, which are popularizing the motto through merchandise and what they wear.
The Turn Back Crime campaign was initiated by international police agency Interpol. According to Interpol, Turn Back Crime is a global campaign to highlight the dangers of organized crime and its effects on our day-to-day lives. Using a variety of media channels, the campaign provides advice on how to stay safe and encourages the general public, businesses and governments to play a role in reducing the impact of crimes.
Since last year, the Jakarta Police have been taking part in popularizing the Turn Back Crime slogan by selling various merchandise like shirts, key chains and tumblers, said Putri Oktavia, a staff member at the general crimes directorate who is in charge of organizing the campaign.
'Since November, we have sold up to 10,000 shirts to people around the country,' she claimed, adding that the shirts were sold at Rp 200,000 (US$15) .
Turn Back Crime stole the attention of the public after a police operation on Jan. 14 showed officers in action as they took on a group of terrorists following the attack in the heart of the capital.
Footage of police officers in dark blue polo shirts with yellow and white letters reading 'Turn Back Crime' embroiled on their chests and khaki pants ' and wearing brand-name shoes and bags ' was aired over and over by national television for days after the incident.
Ever since, the police have come to be seen in a whole new light.
However, despite the merchandising and all the praise heaped onto the police force after its supposedly heroic action, only few people are aware of, let alone fully understand, the Turn Back Crime initiative.
None of the four people asked by The Jakarta Post about the Turn Back Crime campaign had even heard about it.
One girl, Anisa, 25, had a misperception about the 'Turn Back Crime' initiative. She posted a picture of an airplane with the Turn Back Crime slogan on its body and tail with a caption saying 'OMG, the National Police now have their own plane.'
Even some police officers were unsure what the three words are all about.
'I do not really know the meaning. I just like wearing [the T-shirts], as they are more comfortable than the regular uniforms,' said Chief Brig. Ardi Wibowo, a member of the general crimes unit at the South Jakarta Police.
Ardi said the general crimes unit personnel were given one shirt for free and were obliged to wear it every Thursday.
He said he sometimes felt disturbed when civilians wore the same shirt. 'It is hard to differentiate whether they are police officers or not,' he said, adding that it could create problems in the field.
Turn Back Crime is no longer exclusively the pride of general crimes units.
A police control unit (Sabhara) officer, Ratmoko, said he too had bought the shirt. 'The shirt somehow makes us more friendly in the eyes of the public,' he said.
Ratmoko proudly explained that Turn Back Crime was actually a campaign to involve the public, calling on them to be aware of their surrounding so they could prevent crimes.
However, wearing and selling the shirts did not automatically help the campaign, let alone improve the image of the police in the long run.
Fikri Angga Reksa, a 26-year-old researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said that shirts or other merchandise alone would not boost the police's image.
'Fixing the image should start with improving their performance. If they perform well, their image will be good,' he said, adding that the police's current bad image was due to their own actions.
Fikri said the police had no reason to feel heroic about their actions, as they were merely doing their jobs. 'People are excited about their action just because they rarely see the police do their job well,' he said.
Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) lawyer Maruli Rajagukguk criticized the police for wearing the shirt altogether.
'Wearing the shirt should be reassessed, as it is prone to misuse,' he said, adding that the shirt lacked information about the officers, like their names, ranks and units.
He added that police officers should be identifiable when doing their job.
