The hashtag #BoikotIndosat (boycott Indosat), which is a reference to Indonesian telecommunications provider Indosat Ooredoo, is trending on social media today due to a contentious religious issue.
On May 30, a Facebook user by the name of Riko M Ferajab wrote a couple of statuses on the social media platform, in which he called the current administration “officially the worst ever” and hopes that Habib (an honorific title for a respected Islamic scholar that hardline group FPI leader and pornography suspect Rizieq Shihab calls himself – ed) will take over as the nation’s leader.
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1700413569970519&set=a.484122158266339.113453.100000056761158&type=3&theater
At the end of the second status above, Riko wrote, “whoever criminalizes ulemas and create lies about Muslims must be dragged to court and hanged.”
Riko’s posts caused a lot of controversy online, and netizens soon identified him as a manager at Indosat Ooredoo. Later, the news reached Indosat Ooredoo CEO Alexander Rusli, who took to Twitter to denounce Riko’s posts for being against the values of pluralism under the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI).
Bukan hoax Pak. Langkah sudah diambil. Spt yg disampaikan terpisah kami tdk tolerir staf yg terbukti tdk sejalan dgn negara dan pemerintah
— Alexander Rusli (@alexanderrusli) June 3, 2017
“It’s not a hoax. Steps [for sanction] have been taken. Like we said we do not tolerate staff who are proven to be against the country and its government.”
But Rusli’s response created a backlash of its own as netizens managed to make #BoikotIndosat the top trending topic on Twitter this afternoon. Among the criticisms filed against Indosat Ooredoo, specifically Rusli, is that they shouldn’t punish an employee just because he has a different political opinion. Others also say they’re against the criminalization of ulemas, which is what Riko spoke out against in the first place.
Hey @ooredoo, #BoikotIndosat is no. 1 TT becos of ur CEO @alexanderrusli been intolerant to his employee 4 having different political views!
— Keadilan Sudah Mati (@ummisaadiq) June 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/CondetWarrior/status/871283164752207872
Today, Indosat Ooredoo issued a press release reiterating their support to Indonesia and the unity of its peoples. While acknowledging that every employee is free to express their political opinions, Indosat Ooredoo has internal mechanisms in place that prevents their employees from spreading provocative content online.
It’s not yet clear what sanction was given to Riko at this point.
Indosat Ooredoo is a merger between Indonesian telco Indosat and its Qatari counterpart, Ooredoo, which owns 65% of the venture. Coincidentally, Qatar saw its diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, UAE, and Bahrain cut today after it was accused of backing and funding terrorist groups Islamic State and al Qaeda.
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