Class on Peaceful Narratives and Indonesian Digital Civilization • The Apex Chronicles

The proverb “Mulutmu adalah harimaumu” has a new counterpart: “Ketikanmu adalah harimaumu” meaning that you should be careful with what you type (message) because it can hurt like a sharp weapon. The context has adapted to technological developments, but the meaning remains the same. This proverb is relevant due to the proliferation of comment sections filled with tendentious and potentially conflict-inducing content, even criminal acts. That is why I express “Ketikanmu adalah harimaumu” as a response and concern over the decline in the quality of netizen civilization and the potential for national disintegration.

Appreciation is indeed deserved for the “Kelas Narasi Damai” held in November- December 2025 by The Apex Chronicles and the Irfan Idris Research Center. That is why this class transformed the pattern from merely seven sessions of communication science and human rights lectures into a strategic, ongoing process in addressing national disintegration caused by the uncivilized nature of Indonesia’s cyberspace, through the replication and production of implementable and participatory classes for all groups.

Starting to Realize
The “Kelas Narasi Damai” that has been implemented provides several materials, including: 1) Prevention and handling of radicalism and extremism; 2) Identification of narratives and media polarization that encourage violence; 3) Understanding how to build self-immunity as a way to counter extremist narratives; 4) Ethics in storytelling; 5) Developing transformative narratives for peace; and 6) Communication strategies and peaceful narrative campaigns. These six topics do not merely teach how to understand and develop peaceful narratives, but also convey an implicit message to extend the discourse of peace in the digital space.

Peaceful narratives in the context of cyberspace are closely related to hate speech, one of the major problems on the internet and in Indonesia. Moreover, in Press Release No. 143/HM/KOMINFO/04/2021 issued on Monday, April 26, 2021, and accessible on the official website of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology of the Republic of Indonesia, now the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, it was stated that 3,640 pieces of content related to ethnicity, religion, race, and intergroup relations (SARA) had been handled since 2018. This content may only be a small fraction of what Komdigi has detected, not including similar content scattered across Facebook fan pages, Telegram groups, or WhatsApp broadcasts.

An interesting fact is that Indonesia is the country with the largest smartphone market in the world after China, India, and the United States. A 2026 report by the Statista Research Department on statista.com notes that smartphone users in Indonesia will reach 168 million in 2023. Meanwhile, a 2022 report by Data Reportal, cited on the goodstats.id website, states that the number of connected mobile devices at the beginning of 2022 reached 370.1 million, an increase of 13 million (3.6%) from the same period in the previous year. Meanwhile, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) in its 2023 report stated that the proportion of individuals aged 5 years and above who used mobile phones reached 67.29% of the total population of Indonesia at that time.

This data shows two sides: pride in the rapid development of community interconnection with digital technology and the internet, but also concern about the potential increase in hate speech and other digital-based crimes in cyberspace if not accompanied by increased awareness and internet ethics. The threat is not limited to morality, but also to the reputation of individuals and even the country.

Do you remember the Digital Civility Index data in 2020? Voice of America in its article “Digital Civility Index: Indonesia Worst in Southeast Asia” in 2021, citing a survey conducted by Microsoft of 16,000 respondents in 32 countries between April and May 2020, showed that the civility of Indonesian netizens was very low, ranking 29th out of 32 countries and the worst in Southeast Asia. Civilization here refers to behavior while surfing the internet and using social media applications, including the risk of spreading hoaxes, hate speech, discrimination, misogyny, cyberbullying, trolling, micro-aggression against marginalized groups, fraud, doxing, radicalism, terrorism, and pornography.

The impact of hate speech not only targets victims, but also the wider community and has the potential to create unrest. A recent example is the case of Muhammad Adimas Firdaus Putra Nasihan, a YouTuber and streamer who owns the Resbob account, who insulted Persih Bandung supporters and made hateful remarks against the Sundanese tribe.

In the context of Interfaith Harmony (KUB), for example, according to research by Muhid, et al. (2019) on 813 students aged 16-19 from several cities in East Java, it shows that some teenagers who have been exposed to hate speech and hoaxes on social media have been influenced in their religious prejudice and intolerance due to low media literacy.

The research also confirms that SARA-based hate speech not only gives rise to prejudice and intolerance that has the potential to increase religious sentiment and disrupt interfaith harmony, but also lowers the quality of literacy and emotional intelligence. Therefore, the “Peace Narrative Class” training is relevant to the current situation.

Read also: Technology’s Impact on Terrorism

Awareness to Take Action
The “Kelas Narasi Damai” program has just ended, and it will take time to see the results. However, I have a fairly positive view of this program, because it is not easy to gather intentions and create activities with themes that are often overlooked. Even then, it is not certain that the general public will be enthusiastic. This step is proof that the hopes and role of civil society in peace and civilization are high. However, an important note for this activity and similar ones elsewhere is that the knowledge of building and creating peaceful narratives should not only educate the participants and organizers, let alone stagnate and die with the disappearance of brain cells.

As stated in the research by Pasaribu, et al. (2020), it is necessary to involve Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in preventing and combating hate speech through socialization and education so that not only is understanding of hate speech increased, but the emergence of perpetrators of hate speech is also prevented. This step is in line with the objectives of the “Kelas Narasi Damai”.

Therefore, the spirit and knowledge gained from this training must be reproduced by targeting other participants and disseminating it to every community, society, and country. In fact, if necessary, there should be a module that serves as a guideline for peaceful narration that can be uploaded publicly. Training programs can also be conducted in schools and youth organizations. When the community, or at least the participants, have practiced this training and produced content or writings, for example, it can be considered a small indicator of the success of this activity. Without building awareness and consciousness in peaceful narration, a healthy and highly civilized ecosystem in the Indonesian cyberspace will remain a mere dream.

Author: Sidik Permana