Based on data from the Asia for Animals Coalition in 2021, Indonesia ranks first in creating animal exploitation content on social media. The issue is exacerbated by the prevailing notion among Indonesians that exploitation is limited to physical abuse.
In response to this report, a team from the Student Creativity Program in Social Science and Humanities Research (PKM-RSH) at Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) conducted research on animal exploitation on social media, examining the history of animal exploitation through the lens of Critical Animal Studies (CAS).
The team, led by Muhammad Fernanda Dhiyaul Hak (FIB UGM) and comprising members Fatiya Hasna Alifan (FIB UGM), Nurul Hilda (FKH UGM), and Laras Tristanti (FIB UGM), was supervised by Dr. Fahmi Prihantoro. They also devised strategies to raise awareness about animal welfare in Indonesia.
Fernanda Hak explained that public understanding of animal exploitation is currently limited to physical violence based on past experiences. This is reinforced by environmental psychology theories, which state that personal factors and memories or past experiences shape perceptions.
“As times evolve, so do the forms of animal exploitation, supported by the concept of the five freedoms in animal welfare,” he stated at the UGM campus on Tuesday (Jul. 30).
According to Hak, past experiences of animal exploitation can be analyzed using the concept of Critical Animal Studies (CAS)—essentially, CAS questions all forms of privilege, anthropocentrism, and human oppression of animals. Thus, CAS is strongly committed to ending animal exploitation.
The PKM-RSH team also developed strategies to end animal exploitation on social media. Their research involved 100 Indonesian respondents and included interviews with animal welfare activists, veterinarians, historians, and archaeologists to strengthen the data and ensure a two-way discussion.
Based on the research findings, Hak reported that cases of animal exploitation on social media vary by platform. These forms evolve, proving that animal exploitation is not limited to physical violence.
He emphasized the need for new strategies to prevent animal exploitation on social media. One effective method is to educate the public to stop liking, commenting, subscribing, and sharing such content, as these actions influence engagement.
“If engagement with the content can be reduced, it will effectively decrease the circulation of such content on social media,” Hak explained.
Author: Agung Nugroho
Editor: Gusti Grehenson