Westnoken.com Manokwari – The Press Council was reminded of its role in overseeing general elections in West Papua so journalists can compete democratically. The Press Committee in collaboration with the West Papua General Election Commission (KPU) and the West Papua State Election Supervisory Body (PWASLU) held a workshop on election coverage in Manokwari West Papua Tuesday. In his remarks Asip Setiawan a member of the Journalistic Information Authority said that the media as one of the pillars of democracy has an important role in building and creating qualitative democracy in elections.
This is because the media plays a role in conveying information for the public interest. The press is not an institution or instrument of political power but an instrument for providing information and social control. The function of the media is to oversee the implementation of democracy. Acep said the 2024 election is an important democratic event where the Indonesian people must choose their leaders both in the executive and in the regions from the center to the regions. Because elections are a means of changing power in a peaceful and civilized way journalists must enjoy the principle of independence. Reporting on events must be fair balanced and in accordance with the Journalistic Code of Ethics and the Press Code. At that time the President of the University of West Papua Pascalis Simonya said that elections were a way for the people to convey their political aspirations political communication and the peaceful cycle of political power and responsibility. This requires a series of laws to regulate elections in Lauber and Gördel and to open opportunities for political participation for many people. Therefore the media must be a trusted source of information for the community.
Pascalis said that the conditions for democratic elections are election participants who obey clear and consistent organizational rules elite and intelligent participants neutral bureaucracy and informative and independent media. He said all media must report election events objectively and in a balanced manner to all election participants and all levels of society. West Papua chairman Ilias Eide said the press played an important role in holding elections especially during the election campaign period and sorting them out so the press had to act according to the rules and not cause polarization in society. Media that is not independent is an obstacle in holding elections. While its educational value for the community is lost for Boasloo the media is a strategic alliance to make elections safer more comfortable and more democratic. The media must be a torch or a political party that enlightens society through reporting. Dozens of journalists stationed in West Papua attended the workshop. He is Dwi Eko Lokononto Director of Beritajatim.com as a Resource Officer.