Lately, the number of open demonstrations held by Indonesian citizens has increased. The news has become one of our daily staples, something we consume between lunch and dinner, while sipping our daily dose of caffeine.

However, the last one seemed different. WhatIthought would end up very much the same as the other civil protests turned out to be civil unrest. One that cost lives and led to mass looting, burned buildings, lost files, and broken public infrastructures. But how did it change? Most profoundly, what was the tipping point?

I believe that the murder of Affan did. That exact accident created a snowball effect. In both offline and online spheres, people were mobilized. Instagram stories were filled with pink-green nuance. Profile pictures changed, words spread, debates were bound to happen.

Moreover, on the street, the weather was no longer scorching hot from the sun, but rather from the rage. Fueled with anger, people came down. The math was easy: if the government can do whatever it is doing in front of the camera, then it is definitely going to do the same (if not worse) behind the scenes. And the movement changed into something so out of control. The dice was rolled, game on. The government tasted its own medicine. They got what they always gave, violence.

At least three points sufficiently sum up the reason why it escalated so quickly and massively: 1) bad public communication, 2) low to no accountability, and 3) ineffective crisis management.

Identifying The Faults

The anger did not occur overnight. It was built from years of abuse, neglect, and a feeling of being unheard. The anger worsened with the increase in Representatives’ allowances. Despite budget efficiency, members of the House of Representatives (DPR) and officials continue to live in luxury (Muliawati, 2025). The inequalities further shared the same degree as the skyrocketing price of goods, sharp.

Yet, the recent escalation was not only driven by the policies, but also by statements given by public officials deemed unwise in responding to the national situation. In the theory of public communication and democracy, Carpini (2020) explores Habermas’ theory and concludes that the citizens’ primary role in the public sector is a discursive one; that is, to communicate with the state. Such communication, especially when it is about a public issue or service, is clearly relevant to the public sector (State). That communication determines how democratic one country is. Therefore, officials have to take the citizens’ demands into account and respond accordingly. And that is one thing that they did not do in the first days of escalation.

Aside from a poor choice of communication method, the officials also lack accountability. People’s anger culminates in repressive actions by state officials against mass demonstrations, costing a heavy price in the form of several lives (Whiteboard Journal, 2025). Too costly for the families, yet they only remain as numbers for the officials.

Officials and military have not yet acknowledged their repressive actions, including beatings, using tactical vehicles which violated standard operating procedures, abduction, (un)intentional killing, and the alleged use of expired tear gas, which injured protestors and local residents. Only a few of the Representatives apologized, indeed after their houses were looted and their positions removed.

The combined indicators resulted in ineffective crisis management. Instead of addressing the main issues, the officials came up with frivolous statements that even come across as condescending. Instead of stepping down to talk to the people, they chose to deploy the military, even letting them take excessive measures, treating the people as some war enemy. Nonetheless, as bitter as it can be, surely we can learn one or two.

Navigating The Better Path

Citizens no longer want to be only a receiver. They want to engage in a dialogue, be heard, and also express their opinions. They no longer want to play a role in democracy only through elections. Therefore, these are the few steps that can be done to achieve a better path.

Firstly, building and retaining public trust through being trustworthy at all times.Trusted public communicators have a key advantage (Smillie & Scharfbillig, 2024). The more people have trust in the public administration, the more they will be willing to consider and engage with its development.

Secondly, investing more in efficient ways to listen to the citizens as a way to increase trust in democracy. Effective public communication will create a message that resonates, allowing the carried-out policies to be smoothly tailored and perceived in a meaningful way. This also includes critiques. A good public administrator will not undermine one’s critiques but instead listens, takes notes, considers, and responds.

Thirdly, developing an empathetic and data-driven style of administration. We get it that a public administrator eats from silver plates and spoons. What we want is not to rub it in our face and flaunt your wealth. Citizens expect a more formal tone from public communicators (Smillie & Scharfbillig, 2024) and more empathetic engagement. Deliberative exercises are essential to capture lived experience, which adds a grounded reality to the formation of targeted policies.

Fourthly, reducing coercion and enhancing conversation. No one likes to be held at gunpoint, nor does one want to be abducted or come home all bruised as a result of a silencing attempt. Instead, actually hear the demand. Enhancing proper conversations will not only de-escalate the conflict but also revive the democratic values that have been echoed for so long.

The bottom line is, the last demonstrations were a huge loss for all of us. Innocent people got kidnapped, looted, even died, and were murdered. People’s anger was a direct reflection of their government’s poor performance. Hence, in order to maintain the democratic values that we have been upholding, the aforementioned points are the homework our public administrator must respond to, process, and complete accordingly. Nonetheless, if they still can’t because they do not know how, justhire a new teacher.