Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat delivering a public lecture at the University of Tanjungpura, Friday (9/9/2022). Photo by MKRI/Tiara.

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Friday, September 9, 2022 | 16:55 WIB

JAKARTA (MKRI)—A song by Yenny Sucipto entitled “Satu untuk Indonesia” (“One for Indonesia”) sung by Dirly Idol opened a public lecture by Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat at the Law Faculty of the University of Tanjungpura (FH Untan), Pontianak, West Kalimantan on Friday, September 9, 2022.

Through the lyrics, which was inspired by the diversity and plurality of Indonesia, he wished to make the participants realize that the diversity of ethnic groups and religions is a wealth and the biggest challenge for society to maintain its integrity. Moreover, in the digital era of fast-paced information, where misinformation and disinformation can trigger division and conflict.

Therefore, in his presentation on “Maintaining NKRI Based on Pancasila: The Role Model of the Founding Fathers,” he encouraged the participants to re-examine the values, abilities, and intelligence of the nation’s founders, which artificial intelligence could surpass.

“So, even though humankind is currently in Society 5.0 and have moved away from being society of hunting, farming, industry, and even information, life must remain human-centered,” he said before the university’s rector Garuda Wiko, law faculty dean Syarif Hasyim Azizurrahman, and its academic community.

Justice Arief talked about the founding fathers who could be followed as role models for their exemplary conduct. In a session of the Preparatory Committee for Indonesian Independence (PPKI) on August 18, 1945, he said, they prioritized the nation’s unity when discussing the state goals, foundation, and ideology Pancasila, which is enshrined in the fourth paragraph of the 1945 Constitution. The important session, he said, reflected Indonesia. In it, the founding fathers deliberated by prioritizing unity, solidarity, tolerance, and a shared vision and mission: the unity of Indonesia.

He said Indonesia is a democratic and religious rule of law and not a secular one. He contrasted Indonesia to Turkey and Pakistan, the former a secular country and the latter an Islamic one, both being Muslim-majority countries, similar to Indonesia. Indonesia, he said, concentrated all the virtues of various religions and beliefs under the ideology of Pancasila, especially in the first precept. Many consider Indonesia merely a democratic state of law, which he said is a wrong assumption, since it is a constitutional democracy with the belief in One Supreme God. At the end of his presentation, Justice Arief urged all participants to live their lives based on democracy, the belief in One Supreme God, and Pancasila, in order to create a great nation with noble values.

Untan rector Garuda Wiko also expressed his appreciation for Justice Arief’s willingness to build an intellectual dialogue and discourse on Pancasila, which President Soekarno first developed. He believed the presentation helped provide the students with a comprehensive understanding of the state ideology Pancasila.

“Allow me to represent the University of Tanjungpura to thank you for the opportunity by the Constitutional Court to Untan to collaborate in various activities. The Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia also provided an opportunity for Untan to hold the 2022 Constitution and Anti-Corruption Festival, which is collaboration with the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). It will be followed with the inauguration of a constitution village Kubu Raya Regency,” he said.

Writer        : Sri Pujianti
Editor        : Lulu Anjarsari P.
Translator  : Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Translation uploaded on 11/10/2022 08:13 WIB

Disclaimer: The original version of the news is in Indonesian. In case of any differences between the English and the Indonesian versions, the Indonesian version will prevail.

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