Digital Activism of Rempang Community and Solidarity Against Rempang Eco-City Project Umi Marufah
Universitas Indonesia
Abstract
The conflict caused by the Rempang Eco City Project has transformed a local land dispute into a national issue intensively mediated through digital platforms. This study aims to analyze how digital activism led by the Rempang community and its solidarity alliance functions as a digital public sphere from the perspective of Jurgen Habermas. Using a qualitative approach and discourse analysis of digital content, press releases, and media coverage, this study evaluates the extent to which the save Rempang hashtag digital space meets the ideal criteria of a Habermas public sphere: inclusivity, autonomy, and rational-critical debate. The analysis shows that digital activism successfully created an inclusive counter-public, giving voice to marginalized indigenous communities and building broad national solidarity. The movement effectively generated a counter-narrative centered on human rights and cultural heritage preservation, significantly challenging the narrative of state developmentalism. However, this public sphere is not entirely ideal. Its autonomy is fragile, operating under the threat of state coercion and attempts to delegitimize it through the label hoax. Furthermore, while elements of rational debate are present through investigative reports and legal arguments from civil society organizations, the mobilizing power of the movement relies heavily on viral emotional content, rather than purely rational-critical deliberation. In conclusion, digital activism of Rempang community and solidarity embodies a powerful yet imperfect digital public sphere, highlighting both the democratic potential and the vulnerability of the digital arena in the fight for social justice in contemporary Indonesia.
Keywords: Digital activism, public space, Habermas, Rempang Eco-City, social movement
Topic: Social Community Dynamics in the Digital Age
