DISCOURSE ETHICS ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING IN DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY

Abstract

This research was motivated by the situation of the General Election campaign on February 14, 2024 in Indonesia. The election includes the selection of the President and Vice President, Members of the Regional Representative Council, and Members of the People’s Representative Council simultaneously throughout the territory of the Republic of Indonesia. In accordance with the purpose of the General Election, democratic activities through voting by the citizens will determine the winners for the positions of president, vice president, regional representative council members, and people’s representative council members. These agreements on candidates are regulated based on Law No. 7/2017 and Article 22E of the 1945 Constitution. All of these regulations are legal norms derived from Pancasila, which serves as a moral norm. As a moral norm, Pancasila is a valid foundation for accepting Article 22E of the 1945 Constitution and Law No. 7/2017. The validity of this claim to Pancasila lies in its universal values accepted by all Indonesian citizens. Pancasila embodies the recognition of divinity, humanity, unity, democracy, and social justice for all Indonesian people. The values within Pancasila, as validity claims, legitimize the normative claims outlined in Article 22E of the 1945 Constitution and Law No. 7/2017 concerning General Elections. Therefore, the implementation of general elections as regulated by Law No. 7/2017 must reflect the values of Pancasila, which provide validity to the execution of the General Election on February 14, 2024 in all regions of the Republic of Indonesia. The issue lies in the fact that the implementation of Law No. 7/2017 does not align with the values of Pancasila, which is a national consensus serving as the legal basis. Consequently, various violations during the 2024 General Election campaign, such as vote-buying through money politics, intimidation of power, slander, and hate speech, must be criticized. By adopting discourse ethics, political education can strengthen citizen participation, respect plurality of views, and ensure that Pancasila values remain relevant in democratic political practice.