FEATURE PROGRAM IN PRIVATE TELEVISIONAS LEARNING MEDIA TO FIGHT
AGAINTS HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Dede Mulkan
Lecturer
Department of Journalism, Faculty of Communication Science
Padjadjaran University, Bandung, Indonesia
ABSTRACT
Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery. In Indonesia, there are many women are seeking jobs worldwide. Most of them initially are offered to work as domestic servants. Unfortunately, many of these workers are later forced into abusive conditions such sexual exploitation (prostitution or sex entertainment industry) or labour exploitation. It was reported that the estimation number for this is between 6.5 million to 9 million people.
There are many causes of human trafficking. In Indonesia according to US Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report in 2011, it includes poverty, lack of employment opportunities, unequal gender roles, and community and family pressures to employ children. There are many efforts being made not only by Government in terms of placing in the law and acts to prevent but also many NGOs and other institutions put they concerns in prosecuting, protecting and preventing it.
Private television stations also can take part in campaigning and fighting movements against human trafficking. Many television programs can be developed for two purposes. Firstly, it can be used as an alternative way to educate people about the issue. People would then have information and knowledge to make informed-decision to prevent them from any traps made by traffickers. Secondly, media may also plays its rule to campaign and fight against human trafficking especially to help and protect the victims. This paper will look at on how the feature program on private television be developed for those purposes.
Keywords: Television, Feature Program, Human Trafficking
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1. BACKGROUND
Indonesia is in the second tier in a report on human trafficking released by the U.S. State Department last month. This means that the government of Indonesia is considered not fully comply with the standard of The Law of Human Trafficking Victims Protection, although every efforts are being made to achieve that standard.
In the United States Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report issued In 2011, Indonesia entered the second tier too to meet the standard of protection of victims of trafficking in persons (TPPO). Indonesia is considered as a main source of trafficking, including women, children and men, both as a sex slave and forced labor.
According to data from the Indonesian government, as quoted in the report, approximately six million Indonesian migrant workers abroad, including 2.6 million workers in Malaysia and 1.8 million in the Middle East. Of the total migrant workers, 4.3 million of whom are documented workers and 1.7 million were classified as undocumented workers. Approximately 69 percent of Indonesian migrant workers are women.
Indonesian government also states that two per cent of those six million Indonesian workers are victims of human trafficking. Moreover, about two per cent of migrant workers who have legal documents abroad are victims of human trafficking. The number of victims is estimated to be much higher than two per cent, especially among undocumented workers abroad.
In 2011 the acts of traffickingwhich victims were Indonesian, occurred in the countries of the Middle East, Malaysia, Chile, New Zealand, the Philippines, Egypt, and the United States.
Indonesia could be a destination country, transit, and other sources of human trafficking. In June 2011 alone, there were about 3909 people were affected by the majority of women. Trafficking victims were not limited to the poor and uneducated.
Human trafficking is buying and selling of human beings. According to the Palermo Protocol definition in paragraph three, trading activities include: recruitment, transportation, transfer of, or receipt of persons. Forms of trafficking are done by threats or use of force or other forms of coercion, such as: abduction, deception, abuse of power, abuse of vulnerable position, using the giving or receiving of payments (benefits) to obtain approval of a conscious (consent) of a person having control over another person for the purpose of exploitation.
Exploitation includes at least; prostitution (the exploitation of prostitution) of people such as forced labor or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, and the removal of organs. Human trafficking is a modern-day slavery. The perpetrators of deceptive and forced in exploitative situations, and can happen to anyone including children. In the case of child trafficking is involving any persons less than 18 years old.
The Indonesian Law No. 21 Year 2007 on Combating the Crime of Trafficking in Persons, is bringing new hope and a challenge to the legal apparatus and observer of the human trafficking, to re-observe and study the elements and systems of legal protection (especially for the survivors) in human trafficking.
The preparation of Act Eradication of Trafficking in Persons apparently meant to embody the Law21 Year 2007 on Combating the Crime of Trafficking in Persons and the new elements of the new legal norms in our criminal justice system.
The Law No. 21 Year 2007 is an instrument to protect the public from the dangers of human trafficking. However, deem to be aware that the characteristics of human trafficking are specific and an extraordinary crime. Because it involves many complex aspects and transnational organized crime. It crossed national borders and neatly done by the organization and closed from any outside intervention.
2. THE CRUELTY OF THE HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Modern-day slavery and human cruelty for the reason of money revealedin a documentary film called 'Sands of Silence' which was very surprising, asit is based on the true story of one of the victims of slavery.
If now comes institutions called 'Human Trafficking Survivors Foundation', the founder and chairman is none other victims of slavery itself, the Virginia Isaias.
In this film, Virginia says she was beaten by an unknown person, passed out, and woke up on the floor of a new unoccupied house.In the end she knew that she was kidnapped with her six-monthaged baby and forced into prostitution in the state of Chiapas, southern Mexico.
The kidnappers took the baby and give the baby to another woman and then kidnapping another baby to be handed in to her. The kidnappers also threatened and had people who are always controlling her. Once Virginia could escape, she had to pay to get her baby back.
Virginia’s tragedy often occurs in young women, says filmmaker 'Sands of Silence' Chelo Alvarez-Stehle which is also Mexicans. In the film it is revealed that globalization can encourage people to migrate, urging people to move from one country to another, making it vulnerable to the traffickers. Chelo Alvarez-Stehleis not only bringing the story of Virginia in a film, but also created the online game to educate youth on the issue.
Hundreds, perhaps thousands of young women, teens under the age of 10 are victims of forced prostitution. People who deal with slavery are pursued. Simultaneously, 'California Against Sexual Exploitation' (CASE) was made to increase the punishment and bring relief to women as victims of abduction and slavery.
Trafficking syndicates in Indonesia work independently.While other companies are working with international labor recruiters based in Indonesia, known as PJTKI which operates as the partial recruitment of trafficking networks. They plunged the workers into debt bondage so the victims had no choice but to follow the will of recruiters. The traffickers can operate with impunity because of the endemic corruption among law enforcement officials and lack of commitment to uphold the rule of law.
U.S. State Department Report acknowledged that in terms of law enforcement in Indonesia, Law No. 21 Year 2007 is a comprehensive law that essentially prohibits all forms of trafficking in persons and impose severe penalties, ranging from three to fifteen years for violators. But while police investigators are using the legislation to set up the demands, some prosecutors and judges still use a variety of other laws. Police and other law enforcement officers complain about the difficulty in coordination among police, prosecutors, witnesses, and the court to arrive at a successful verdict.
So far, there are still many challenges perceived as trafficking is not normal social phenomenon. The cause of this problem is very complex, not only because of ignorance, but the existence of a syndicate that has a neat organization.
To overcome many of these challenges, Indonesia has had a task force involving all across ministries and relevant institutions to cooperate in efforts to combat this issue, although implementation in the field are still having problems.
The barriers are including the enforcement of the law because of the very few cases that appear trafficking offenders could go to jail. To overcome many of these challenges, the government made a variety of training, especially for law enforcement themselves, such as through the Institute of Education Police (LEMDIKPOL) and other relevant institutions. Training regarding the substance of the matter, by integrating an understanding and creating the same perception of the law enforcement officials.
Related to human trafficking, there are three essential elements are included in the legislation which are the processes, means, and goals. The process covers the deliverance, recruitment and housing of the victims. It sometimes included the threatened and tricked acts.While the goal is the various of exploitation forms. Sometimes the perception of law enforcement agencies in these three elements has not been the same. There is also an endeavorby sitting with the prosecutors, investigators, and judges, to reach the same perception and also to create a system of legal justice and gender perspective to justice for the victims themselves.
The Indonesian government has been providing integrated services centers, in addition to police stations across Indonesia that provides protection units and health services for women and children, including victims of trafficking.
The phenomenon of human trafficking in Indonesia since the crisis, are now increasing. Not just limited to the purpose of prostitution or sexual exploitation of human beings, but also includes other forms of exploitation, such as forced labor and slavery like practices in some areas of informal sector, including domestic workers. The crime is very degrading human value and a form of human slavery in modern times. Therefore it deserves serious attention and treatment to prevention and eradication strategies must be developed in a certain way.
Professionalism and reliability of law enforcement officers required not only to understand the provisions of law and enforcement but also to implement it consistently and continuously. In addition to community support through advocacy and social empowerment, human trafficking can be reduced and even eliminated completely to its roots.
3. ROLE OF THE MEDIA IN COMBATING HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Exploitation of human trafficking can include several things including: (1) the exploitation of human beings for prostitution or other forms of sexual exploitation. (2) forced labor or services. (3) slavery(4) servitude and (5) the stealingof human organ.
Meanwhile, according to the report of the "U.S. Department of State Trafficking" in 2011, there are at least three things that lead to human trafficking, particularly in Indonesia, namely: (1) limited employment opportunities (2) the concept of unequal gender and (3) family pressure on employ children
The efforts to prevent these are not only carried out by the government, but a number of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are also doing these prevention efforts. Even the presence of the media, have also been optimized to participate in addressing human trafficking.
One of the possible participation of the media in preventing even against human trafficking activities, is to create a special program with the theme of prevention of human trafficking.
Many programs on private television station shows its roles in the prevention and the "campaign against" human trafficking. Campaign efforts to prevent human trafficking through television is at its core as one alternative way to educate audiences. Through this program, people will have the knowledge and correct information about what is human trafficking and how to prevent it. In addition, the media can also play an active role in the campaign against human trafficking, especially to help and protect victims. One of the programs run at the private television station which can be used as a medium of learning for the public on the prevention of human trafficking is Feature Program.
4. TELEVISION FEATURE PROGRAM TO COMBAT HUMAN TRAFFICKING
Television Feature Program is an alternative program which can be managed by television station in connection with the prevention of trade in human beings.
It is a program that runs in a such way, as a result of reporting the facts and data from the field, equipped with the opinions of the parties concerned and competent, and provides advice and opinions. This program is different from the news program in general, because in News Program, facts and data presented briefly and concisely, while the Featured Program, the duration may be longer. It gives the opportunities to reveal the data, facts, information, advice and opinion be explored to give a whole picture of understanding of the issue. It would then leads to depth understanding to the television viewers.
5. THE CONCEPTS OF FEATURE TELEVISION
In journalism, a "feature" is a typical inscription, written in graceful and attractive, and relatively timeless (as the writing is not meant to meet the deadline like news). There is no rule that binds the precise length of a feature, as far as the feature is interesting.
In short, the structure, style and feature package are different from the news (spot news, straight news, hard news). Elements of the author's subjectivity can be more pronounced in feature writing. On the other hand, in the news writing, the author must show the objectivity.
The topic of a feature may vary, but generally involve human interest.Everything related to man, with all his behavior and aspects of life (joy, happiness, sadness, suffering, struggle, success, etc.), it is always interesting to write.
Sample of the topics, such as: profile of a teacher who serve in remote areas; lives of poor fishermen in Indramayu; attempts to escape from the bondage of drugs; Indonesian workers who are displaced abroad, and so on.
There are the similarities between feature writing and feature news in television.They include the flexibility in packaging, variation of subjectsand it isrelatively timeless.
There are also some differences in producing a package of features as a television program. It is not the same as making the news package (spot news), in terms of the process, the stages of manufacture, and style of packaging. Featured on television itself can be in many forms.One of the important and will be addressed here is how to make documentary films.
5. THE MEANING OF DOCUMENTARY FILM
The term documentary is derived from the French word, documentaire. It means, a film depicting the journey or a conversation in a particular country. The way of picture taken may be carried out directly or recreated. Until 1960's, traditional documentary is a matter for show-and-tell.
The documentary is not the reproduction of reality, but it is representation of the world in which we live in. If reproduction is interpreted as a mere copy of something that already exists, then the representation means making a certain view of the world. That is, a view that we may never have met before, even though aspects of the represented world is already familiar with us or we often see.
We judge a reproduction of the likeness of the original, of its capacity to exactly the same act, and serve the functions and benefits of the same as the original. The more exact or resembles the original, the better.
On the other hand, we evaluate a representation rather on the nature that offer pleasure, values, insight or knowledge conveyed, and the quality of the orientation or disposition, tone or perspective presented. We usually expect more from the representation, rather than reproduction.
It can quickly be demonstrated in photography. The location of picture-taking should be represented correctly. However, a number of artists to see and represent the truth more and more powerful, than just an ordinary man who happened to pass by there.
The documentary is what we call a "fuzzy concept," a concept that is not clear. Not all so-called documentary films have in common are close to one another, as many means of transportation that could be called a "vehicle".
The documentary does not adopt a fixed inventory techniques, not tied to a set of issues/specific themes to be highlighted, as well as not demonstrating the form or appearance of a single style. Not all documentaries have the same characteristics or traits. Practice Documentary in practice is an arena where things are constantly changing. Various alternative approaches are constantly tested and subsequently adopted by the other, or abandoned. Contestations occur.
Unclear definition arose in part because these definitions change within time, and some others because at any moment there is no single definition can also include all the films, which we might think of as a documentary.
We can get a better grip in defining the documentary, with the approach of the four corners: institutions, practitioners, text (film and video), and the audience.
6. INSTITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK
It looks like in circles, but one way to define documentary is by saying, "The documentary is made by what organizations and institutions that produce it." If Discovery Channel called documentary as a program, then the program/film is labeled a documentary, before the activity of the audience and film critics began.
This definitionserves as an early sign that a work can be considered a documentary. Context will give a sign. If the sponsor is the National Film Board of Canada, Fox TV, History Channel, or Michael Moore, we make certain assumptions about the status of the documentary film, as well as the degree of objectivity, reliability, and credibility. We make assumptions about the status of non-fiction to our and historical reference world, rather than an imagined world of fiction filmmaker.