Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – January has seen blatant disregard of law and regulation by intoxicated driver Apriyani Susanti and protesting workers blocking one of the city's most important thoroughfares and even threatening to occupy Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
On the other side of the law, the government appeared to have problems upholding regulation. The state railway company, PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), has made foreign media headlines for installing concrete balls to deter joy-riders from breaking regulations that bar passengers from riding on the roofs of commuter trains.
For social observers, the reason for such disregard of the law is simple – an absence of leadership that the public could follow. University of Indonesia (UI)'s social psychologist Hamdi Moeloek said that poor leadership had eroded the trust the public has in the state.
"People no longer respect the state because it had equally failed to guarantee the rights of the people. They are not afraid to break the law because they have learned that rules and regulations can easily manipulated," he said.
Put in an environment where rules are followed, Indonesians abroad would abide by them. "Here people from Indonesia should obey by the rules because Singapore has a much better legal system compared to Indonesia. A good and trusted system that force all people, regardless of their identities, to be obedient," he said.
Paramadina University rector Anies Baswedan said that the public had grown apathetic, seeing that law enforcers only defended the interests of certain groups.
"Criminals must be given punishments, regardless of their backgrounds. But this doesn't happen in Indonesia. These days, because law enforcers have mistakenly taught people that their religious, ethnic, or political backgrounds decide their future. No wonder people distrust them," he said.
Gadjah Mada University sociologist Arie Sudjito said that public disobedience could indicate a mode of resistance from the weak. "Protesters, who could be violent, such as those in Bima who fought for their rights because the state has failed to guarantee them," he said.
Hundreds of local people in Bima, West Nusa Tenggara, burned down the regent's office last week. The angry crowd decided to take the law into their own hands after learning that the Bima regent was slow to revoke the permit for mining company PT Sumber Mineral Nusantara (SMN).
Later in the same week, thousands of workers in Bekasi, West Java, blocked the Jakarta-Cikarang toll road access to Bekasi to protest a ruling issued by the Bandung State Administrative Court (PTUN) granting the Bekasi chapter of the Indonesian Employers Association's (Apindo) lawsuit aimed on revoking the 2012 minimum wage set by the local administration.
Arie said that the key to improving the situation and win back the trust is for the government to start indiscriminately enforcing the law. "The government must work hard to provide assurances that we can trust them. This all must begin from the political elites, including members of the House of Representatives," he said.
Anies suggested the government act soon because "violence is contagious". "Allowing some groups to freely bend the law will stimulate others to do the same. So, start now before it's too late," he said.