The incident of the arrest of the alleged perpetrator of the theft, a woman from North Sumatra with the initials YL, last Wednesday (17/6/2020) at Ule Gle Market - Pidie Jaya - Aceh became a serious concern from KontraS Aceh. YL, who was arrested by residents at Ulee Glee Market, Bandar Dua District, Pidie Jaya, was shown using a video in a state where the local mob was almost enraged.
In the video footage that is now widely spread on social media, it appears that YL is in a helpless condition after being surrounded by a male-dominated mass. Her hijab was then forcibly pulled by a resident, then a crowd of people grabbed her hair while shouting forcing her hair to be cut. Soon, the mob judged YL by cutting his hair with a knife, this clearly shows that the community is perpetrating YL.
Related Links:
This incident left controversy, is that really the way to take action against the perpetrators of theft? some understand the angry reaction of the public, on the pretext that the woman was indeed caught stealing. However, not a few regretted the behavior of a number of residents in the video which looked arbitrary towards YL. They regret that Aceh, which is actually an Islamic Sharia area, has responded to an action in un-Islamic ways.
The Commission for Disappeared Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) in Aceh considers that this incident shows the weakness of the law enforcement process by state officials against crimes committed en masse so far. So, in this case, the police must act immediately, to prove that every crime, even though it is committed en masse, will still face legal proceedings.
Related Links:
"In addition to the weak law enforcement process against crimes committed by the masses, what happened at Ulee Gle Market also shows how weak some of us are towards humanity, so that such behavior is considered normal," said the Head of the Campaign and Advocacy Division of KontraS Aceh, Azharul Husna in a statement. officially, Thursday (18/6/2020).
Supposedly, for people who are aware of the law, when they find someone who has committed a crime, it must be handed over to law enforcement officials. However, what happened was that the perpetrators were treated inhumanely. This shows how low people's knowledge of the law itself is.
Related Links:
According to KontraS Aceh, instead of taking the perpetrators to the nearest police station, the community took the law into their own hands. “No one denies that stealing is criminal behavior. But forcibly removing the headscarf, grabbing and cutting the woman's hair in the middle of the market is one of the cruel and inhuman acts of torture and degrading human dignity," said Husna.
On the other hand, our society, he continued, should reflect on the persecution that happened to an Acehnese in Tangerang, Banten.
“If we want to go back, do we remember the persecution and arson that befell the Acehnese in Tangerang related to allegations of theft? Aren't we all criticizing him?" Husna said.
At that time, the community urged that it is better to have proof first. However, this is a paradox with what is currently happening in Aceh. He questioned why when a similar incident occurred, some people forgot? even consider it as an appropriateness.
KontraS Aceh reiterates that all parties are not trapped in vigilante behavior. If there is a suspicion of a criminal act, report it to the authorities. If the verification process is complete, let the legal apparatus work according to their duties.
Related Links:
To the police, KontraS Aceh urges the perpetrators of the persecution at Ulee Glee Market, Pidie Jaya to be prosecuted immediately.
"It is important to investigate this, so that similar incidents (of vigilantism) do not happen again in the future," he concluded.
EN 
ID