IDEOLOGIES OF THE GUARDIAN’S OPINION ARTICLES ON …ideologi terhadap peran pemerintah Indonesia...

IDEOLOGIES OF THE GUARDIAN’S OPINION ARTICLES

ON FOREST FIRES IN INDONESIA REVEALED THROUGH

THEMATIC ROLES OF INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of Requirements

for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

ISTU SEPTANIA

Student Number: 134214020

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

2017

PLAGIAT MERUPAKAN TINDAKAN TIDAK TERPUJI

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IDEOLOGIES OF THE GUARDIAN’S OPINION ARTICLES

ON FOREST FIRES IN INDONESIA REVEALED THROUGH

THEMATIC ROLES OF INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT

AN UNDERGRADUATE THESIS

Presented as Partial Fulfillment of Requirements

for the Degree of Sarjana Sastra

in English Letters

By

ISTU SEPTANIA

Student Number: 134214020

ENGLISH LETTERS STUDY PROGRAM

DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH LETTERS

FACULTY OF LETTERS

SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY

YOGYAKARTA

2017






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“In nature nothing exists alone.”

- Silent Spring, Rachel Carson


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For my family


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude for my thesis advisor, Arina

Isti'anah, S.Pd., M.Hum., for the precious advices and encouragement throughout my

process in writing this undergraduate thesis. Without her supports, this thesis would

never have been completed. I also thank my co-advisor, Fransisca Kristanti, S.Pd.,

M.Hum., for the valuable suggestions. Furthermore, I thank all faculty members of

English Letters Department of Sanata Dharma University who gave me invaluable

knowledge which helped me creating this undergraduate thesis.

Furthermore, I would thank my dearest friends: Anita, Yunita, Vania, Upik,

Windy, Laura, Deasy, Eunike, Imas, Sari, Yohana, and all members of Class A.

Thank you for all the encouragement. I also would like to thank UKPM Natas for

giving me opportunities to learn the importance of mass media in society.

Lastly, I would be forever grateful for the support and help from my family,

my father, mother, brother and sister. Without their support, I would not reach this

point.

Istu Septania


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE PAGE ..................................................................................................... ii

APPROVAL PAGE ........................................................................................... iii

ACCEPTANCE PAGE ...................................................................................... iv

STATEMENT OF ORIGINALITY ................................................................... v

LEMBAR PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI KARYA ILMIAH vi

MOTTO PAGE .................................................................................................. vii

DEDICATION PAGE ........................................................................................ viii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ............................................................................... ix

TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................... x

LIST OF TABLES.............................................................................................. xii

ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................... xiii

ABSTRAK ........................................................................................................... xiv

CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION ...................................................................... 1

A. Background of the Study ..................................................................... 1

B. Problem Formulation .......................................................................... 5

C. Objectives of the Study ....................................................................... 5

D. Definition of Terms ............................................................................. 6

CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF LITERATURE .................................................. 7

A. Review of Related Studies .................................................................. 7

B. Review of Related Theories ................................................................ 8

1. Theory of Semantics ...................................................................... 8

a. Lexical semantics ...................................................................... 9

b. Phrasal or sentential semantics.................................................. 9

2. Theory of Thematic Roles ...............................................................10

a. Agent....................................................................................... 10

b. Author...................................................................................... 11

c. Instrument................................................................................ 12

d. Patient...................................................................................... 12

e. Experiencer.............................................................................. 13

f. Benefactives............................................................................ 13

g. Theme....................................................................................... 14

h. Source...................................................................................... 14

i. Goal.......................................................................................... 15

j. Locative.................................................................................... 15


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k. Reason..................................................................................... 15

l. Purpose.................................................................................... 16

3. Theory of Discourse Analysis ....................................................... 17

4. Theory of Language and Ideology................................................ 19

5. Theory of Language and Newspaper............................................ 21

C. Theoretical Framework ....................................................................... 23

CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY .................................................................. 25

A. Object of the Study.............................................................................. 25

B. Approach of the Study ........................................................................ 25

C. Method of the Study ............................................................................ 26

1. Data Collection.............................................................................. 26

2. Data Analysis................................................................................. 28

CHAPTER IV: ANALYSIS ............................................................................... 29

A. Thematic Roles of Indonesian Government in The Guardian’s

Article................................................................................................... 29

1. Thematic Roles in Article 1 .......................................................... 30

a. Agent....................................................................................... 30

b. Author...................................................................................... 34

c. Source....................................................................................... 35

d. Goal.......................................................................................... 36

2. Thematic Roles in Article 2 ........................................................... 37

a. Agent........................................................................................ 37

b. Patient...................................................................................... 42

c. Goal......................................................................................... 42

3. Thematic Roles in Article 3 .......................................................... 43

B. Ideologies of Indonesian government in The Guardian’s Articles ..... 45

1. Responsibility ................................................................................ 45

2. Warning ......................................................................................... 52

CHAPTER V: CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION ...................................... 56

A. Conclusion........................................................................................... 56

B. Suggestion............................................................................................ 58

BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................... 59

APPENDICES...................................................................................................... 61


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LIST OF TABLES

Table 2.1. Summary of 12 Thematic Roles......................................................... 16

Table 4.1. Summary of Thematic Roles of Indonesian Government.................. 30


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ABSTRACT

SEPTANIA, ISTU. Ideologies of The Guardian’s Opinion Articles on Forest

Fires in Indonesia Revealed through Thematic Roles of Indonesian

Government. Yogyakarta: English Letters Department, Faculty of Letters,

Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2017.

Thematic roles are the semantic roles that bind entities to events. Thematic

roles are useful in defining the relation of an entity or argument and an event or

predicate. By examining the thematic roles which are assigned to arguments,

ideologies of a discourse can be revealed. Newspaper delivers information which

permeates the readers’ consciousness and signifies the social behavior. This study

examines the thematic roles of Indonesian government in The Guardian’s opinion

articles on forest fires in Indonesia in order to find the ideologies within.

There are two problems scrutinized in this study. The first problem is the

thematic roles assigned to Indonesian government in the selected articles. The

second problem is the ideologies of the texts based on the data findings from the

first problem. The answer of this problem will prove how the thematic roles

signify the ideologies on roles of Indonesian government in the forest fires.

The data used for this study is from three opinion articles on forest fires in

Indonesia which are published in The Guardian online newspaper. For the

analysis, only the thematic roles of Indonesian government are examined. To find

the ideologies of the texts, a discourse analysis is applied in order to discover the

relation between the texts and the context.

There are two findings in this study. The first finding is that the thematic

roles assigned to Indonesian government are agent, author, patient, source, and

goal. In comparison with other kind of thematic roles, thematic role agent is

considerably the most assigned one. The second finding is the ideologies revealed

from the thematic roles and predicates. They are responsibility and warning. In

conclusion, thematic roles in a discourse can reveal the ideologies of the texts.


xiv

ABSTRAK

SEPTANIA, ISTU. Ideologies of The Guardian’s Opinion Articles on Forest

Fires in Indonesia Revealed through Thematic Roles of Indonesian

Government. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Sastra Inggris, Fakultas Sastra,

Universitas Sanata Dharma, 2017.

Thematic roles adalah hubungan semantik yang mengikat entiti pada

situasi tertentu. Thematic roles berguna dalam menentukan hubungan suatu entiti

atau argumen dengan suatu situasi atau predikat. Dengan meneliti thematic roles

yang diberikan pada argumen, ideologi pada suatu diskursus bisa terlihat. Surat

kabar menyampaikan informasi yang mempengaruhi kesadaran pembacanya dan

menunjukkan perilaku sosial. Penelitian ini mengamati thematic roles pemerintah

Indonesia dalam artikel opini The Guardian tentang kebakaran hutan di Indonesia

untuk mengetahui ideologi di dalamnya.

Terdapat dua rumusan masalah yang diteliti dalam penelitian ini. Rumusan

masalah pertama ialah thematic roles yang diberikan pada pemerintah Indonesia

dalam teks yang sudah dipilih. Rumusan masalah kedua ialah ideologi dalam teks

berdasarkan penemuan data dari rumusan masalah pertama. Jawaban untuk

rumusan masalah ini akan membuktikan bagaimana thematic roles menunjukkan

ideologi terhadap peran pemerintah Indonesia dalam masalah kebakaran hutan.

Data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah tiga artikel opini

mengenai kebakaran hutan di Indonesia yang dipublikasikan di surat kabar daring

The Guardian. Untuk bagian analisis, hanya thematic roles pada argumen

pemerintah Indonesia yang diteliti. Dalam mencari ideologi dalam teks, analisis

wacana diterapkan untuk menemukan hubungan antara teks dan konteks.

Terdapat dua penemuan dari hasil penelitian ini. Penemuan pertama yakni

thematic roles yang diberikan pada pemerintah Indonesia adalah agent, author,

patient, source, dan goal. Dibandingkan dengan thematic roles yang lain, thematic

role agent adalah thematic role yang paling banyak diberikan. Penemuan kedua

yakni ideologi yang terlihat dari thematic roles serta predikat. Dua ideologi yang

ditemukan adalah tanggung jawab dan peringatan. Sebagai kesimpulan, thematic

roles pada suatu diskursus dapat menunjukkan ideologi dari teks tertentu.


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CHAPTER I

INTRODUCTION

A. Background of the Study

Communication is essential for human beings in order to live collectively.

People share and receive information to expand their knowledge. Language is one

way that people employ to communicate with each other. There are two types of

language, non-verbal and verbal. Non-verbal language is a language without

words, such as facial expressions and gestures, whereas verbal language is a

language relating to words. One of verbal medium in everyday life is newspaper.

Newspaper basically presents news, which consists of actual information

about a particular incident or occurrence. According to Reah, news is

“information about recent events that are of interest to a sufficiently large group,

or that may affect the lives of a sufficiently large group” (2002: 4). News is

conducted in verbal language to share reports to the readers.

In addition to news, another type of the content in newspaper is a view.

Views, called as editorials and op-ed articles, are usually expected to express

opinions (Van Dijk in Bell and Garrett, 1998: 21). An editorial is an important

article in newspapers. It expresses opinion of the editorial team about a particular

issue and shows the stand of the newspaper as an institution. An op-ed is an

opinion article in newspaper which does not belong to editorial page that contains

comment on particular subjects. Usually, an op-ed is written by someone who is

not employed by the newspaper.


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This study focuses on the online newspaper. Online newspaper is selected

because today it is more common for people to access information by browsing

the Internet than reading the newspaper daily. The media write articles, news, and

other kinds of writing on the Internet in earnest. Thus, online newspaper has

become the main course from the media to the public.

Newspaper induces the readers’ view on certain issues as every piece of

news and editorial writing carries ideologies. Ideology, according to Bercovitch, is

the system of interconnected ideas, symbols, and beliefs by which a culture

pursues to justify and perpetuate itself. It is also can be defined as the net of

rhetoric, ritual, and assumption through which society forces, persuades, and

coheres (1986: 8). Subsequently, a reader’s view is influenced “by representations

of scientific knowledge conveyed by the press and other mass media” (Carvalho,

2007: 223).

The topic of this study is forest fires happened in Indonesia in the end of

2015 and early 2016. The forest fires were massive environmental apocalypses.

Many rare animals and plants were killed in the catastrophes. The forest fires

released great haze that created difficulties to everyday activities of the citizens.

The immense plumes led to conflicts with the neighboring countries, like

Singapore and Malaysia. The forest fires were a major issue that it became

headlines and topic of opinion articles in newspapers for months.

This study concentrates on The Guardian’s opinion articles on forest fires

in Indonesia. Three opinion articles are found from The Guardian online

newspaper. The website address of The Guardian online newspaper is


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www.theguardian.com. The Guardian has its own variation in naming the opinion

articles. There are columnists, letters, and editorial. Columnists section presents

articles by individual writers, either to write weekly or occasionally. Letters

section presents letters from the readers expressing their views on certain issues.

Editorial section presents articles published by authority of the editorial team of

The Guardian. All opinion articles discussed here are from the columnists section.

The first one is an opinion article entitled “Indonesia is burning. So why is

the world looking away?” by George Monbiot. It was published on Friday,

October 30th, 2015. The article takes the catastrophe of forest fires in Indonesia as

the key subject. The article argues how the eco-apocalypse was not covered

adequately by the media. That attitude would make the public lack of information

about the forest fires. The government would ignore it as much as the media did.

The article suggests that the media should cover the upcoming climate summit in

Paris in December 2015 properly by mentioning other events happening outside

the intergovernmental diplomacy and drama (Monbiot, 2015).

The second is an opinion article by Joshua Oppenheimer entitled “Why

today’s global warming has roots in Indonesia’s genocidal past”. It was published

on Tuesday, May 3rd, 2016. Oppenheimer was the director of the films The Act of

Killing (2013) and The Look of Silence (2015). His films capture stories of the

1965 mass killings leaders and perpetrators decades later after the genocide. His

article argues that the human right abuse in 1965 genocide affected global climate.

The fires were set up by the companies to clear land for oil palm plantation. The

palm oil companies could get away from the burning down the forests because of


http://www.theguardian.com/

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their affiliation with the military. The people might be involved in the disaster as

well by consuming the products from Indonesian palm oil. Impunity, the article

argues, remains the norm in Indonesia, including on the 1965 genocide and forest

fires. At the end, the article argues that some progresses appeared as more people

became concerned with the genocide and the first symposium examining the

massacre was held (Oppenheimer, 2016).

The third is an opinion article entitled “Is Indonesia's fire crisis connected

to the palm oil in our snack food?” by Lindsey Allen. It was published on Friday,

October 23rd, 2015. The article points out that the causes of forest fires in some

islands in Indonesia are climate change and a broken system of international

commodity production. The smoke crisis from the forest fires is significant to the

international world as the emission in total is immense. The article suggests that

the government and the companies should commit to curing the damages and

preventing the forest fires in the future (Allen, 2015).

The Guardian is chosen in this study because it is a reliable and

respectable newspaper company. The Guardian has been vocal on promoting

environmental issues. George Monbiot, who writes one of the articles studied

here, works for The Guardian and was awarded as the top environmental

journalist by Press Gazette in 2011. He writes opinions weekly in The Guardian.

Joshua Oppenheimer is an American filmmaker of documentaries on Indonesian

genocide in 1960s. Thus, he is familiar with political condition in Indonesia.

Lindsey Allen is the Executive Director of Rainforest Action Network. She is a

senior environmental and social justice activist.


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The data used in this paper are the thematic roles assigned to Indonesian

government in the articles. The writer analyzes the distribution and function of the

thematic roles. The thematic roles show what roles Indonesian government has

and what roles are expected to be fulfilled by Indonesian government. The

thematic roles are analyzed together with the predicates and the meaning of the

selected clauses or sentences. Since the focus is on the thematic roles of

Indonesian government, this study examines the political ideologies of Indonesian

government. The ideologies become apparent from the analysis of the linguistic

analysis and discourse analysis. As the texts are examined to discover the relation

with the real events, the ideologies are also revealed.

B. Problem Formulation

Based on the background of the study, the problems of this study are

formulated as follows

1. What thematic roles are assigned to Indonesian government in The Guardian’s

articles about forest fires in Indonesia?

2. How do the thematic roles reflect the ideologies of the articles?

C. Objectives of the Study

This paper is conducted to answer the problem formulation above. The

first objective is to observe the thematic roles of Indonesian government in The

Guardian’s articles about forest fires in Indonesia. The second objective is to

examine critically the functions of the thematic roles in the articles. The purpose


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is to see how the roles of Indonesian government are depicted in the newspaper

articles related to the forest fires.

D. Definition of Terms

An opinion article is commonly defined as a piece of writing in which the

ideas are expressed of a differing or opposing view (Leith and Meyerson, 1989:

85). Opinion articles require argumentations to convince readers. As Al Kohlani

argues in her dissertation, the purpose of an opinion article is to influence readers’

views on information and occurrences (2010: 9).

Thematic role is any of a set of semantic concepts that a noun phrase may

have in relation to a verb. According to Frawley, thematic roles are relations

between predicates and their arguments (1992: 199).

Indonesian government branches into three, which are the executive, the

legislative, and the judicial (Handoyo, 2015: 126, 169-170). The executive branch

has power to execute plans and actions according to the laws. The legislative

branch has power to make laws. The judicial branch is related to legal judgment.

An ideology, according to Althusser in Malrieu, is a system with its logic

and rigor of representations (images, myths, ideas or concepts), having an

existence and a historical role within a society (1999: 12). Malrieu argues that the

best characterization of ideology is the encounter of a mutual recognition between

a social formation and a discourse.


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CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

A. Review of Related Studies

The study of thematic roles in newspapers was conducted by Widyastuti

(2011). Her research examines the ideologies of two different newspapers by

analyzing two news articles on the same incident, which is the handshake between

the Indonesian Minister and the US First Lady. The ideologies are analyzed from

the thematic roles and propositions of the sentences. She argues that “the ideology

presented by The Jakarta Post and the one presented by The New York Times is

generally different” (Widyastuti, 2011: 62). The different ideologies exist because

the newspapers are from different groups and have different targets of readers.

Nevertheless, there are some differences between the writer’s research and

Widyastuti’s. First, the objects of this study are three opinion articles. Second, the

purpose of this study is to find the roles of Indonesian government seen from the

thematic roles assigned.

Studies on opinion articles of newspapers are often conducted to scrutinize

the ideologies. Two studies are closely related to this research’s topic. Moreover,

both studies take the data from online newspapers and analyze the data from

linguistic standpoint. The first study on opinion articles was conducted by

Isti’anah (2015). She discusses how opinions in The Jakarta Post reveal people’s

ideology on capital punishment for drug criminals through the language use,

specifically through the material, relational, mental, and verbal processes.


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There are several differences between this study and Isti’anah’s study.

First, this study examines three opinion articles from The Guardian. Second, this

study focuses on the thematic roles of Indonesian government. Third, this study

employs Frawley’s thematic roles, while Isti’anah’s uses Halliday’s Systemic

Functional Linguistics (SFL) for the approach.

The second one is a study on opinions in news editorials by Bal and Saint-

Dizier (2010). They discuss the editorial analysis and synthesis structure,

principally for making a distinction between facts and opinions. Later, they also

discuss the factors that determine the strength of opinions. In addition, they talk

about the development of argumentation outlining that guides the scrutiny of

opinions in the discourse stage. However, this undergraduate thesis focuses on the

thematic roles, not the whole construction of the article.

B. Review of Related Theories

1. Semantics

Semantics, which is the main guide for this study, is a linguistic study of

meaning (Palmer, 1981: 1). Further, Palmer explains that linguistics is a scientific

study of language and is required to be empirical. It must be possible to test and

verify the statements (Palmer, 1981: 6). Semantics is the study of the generalized

meaning (Palmer, 1981: 8). Two branches of semantics specifically employed in

this study are explained as follows.


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a. Lexical semantics

Lexical semantics, as Cruse puts it as “a variety of ‘contextual’ approach”

(1986: 1), focuses on the meaning of words and relationship between words. It is

implied that the semantic properties of a lexical item are completely indicated in

suitable characteristics of the relation it contrasts with real and possible context

(1986: 1). Thus, the meaning of a word is composed by “its contextual relations”

(1986: 16).

Words, according to Cruse, have two significant characteristics. First, a

word is “typically the smallest element” in a sentence. It has “positional

mobility”, which means a word can be moved without damaging the

grammaticality but might affect the sentence semantically. For example, the

sentence John saw Bill can be changed into: 1) Bill saw John, or 2) Bill, John saw

(1986: 35). Second, words are “typically the largest units” which defy interruption

by the addition of new elements between their basic elements. For example, His

coolness was unbelievable can be added with some new elements as in His

[great] coolness [in the face of danger] was quite unbelievable (1986: 36).

b. Phrasal or sentential semantics

Phrasal or sentential semantics examines the meaning of syntactic units

larger than one word. It studies how the meaning of words is mixed into phrases

and sentence meaning, and “the meaning relationships among these larger units”

(Fromkin, Rodman, and Hyams, 1993: 188). According to Pagin, a sentence is “an

expression with a certain type of meaning, for instance a sentence expressing a

proposition, something that is true or false” concerning the reality (2016: 65).


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2. Thematic roles

Thematic roles are defined by Frawley (1992: 197) as the semantic

relations that bind entities or arguments to events or predicates. According to

Frawley, predicates are “inherently dependent phenomena”, while arguments are

“independent individuals” (1992: 198). The representation of a predicate in an

argument is known as predication. In regular cases, events embody predicates and

entities embody arguments. For example, in the expression The boy is eating the

pizza, the event ‘eating’ is the predicate because ‘eating’ must be done by

someone and of something. Each entity, ‘boy’ and ‘pizza’, is an argument of the

predicate because they embody the ‘eating’. Moreover, the arguments instantiate

the predicate of ‘eating’ in diverse ways.

Frawley defines 12 thematic roles (1992: 201-228). They are categorized

into participant and nonparticipant roles. The participant roles are grouped into

three according to their functions in the predication, which are logical actors,

logical recipients, and spatial roles. The three concerning the logical actor are

agent, author, and instrument. The three concerning the logical recipient are

patient, benefactive, and experiencer. The three with the properties of spatial roles

are theme, source, and goal. On the other hand, the nonparticipant roles are

locative, reason, and purpose. Each thematic role is described as follows.

a. Agent

The thematic role agent is defined as the primary doer involved in the

predicate. The agent deliberately and actively instigates an act. Normally, the

agent is human and commonly connected with volition, will, intentionality, and


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responsibility. The sentences Tommy drove the car and Our food was eaten by

racoons (Frawley, 1992: 203) show the agency in its simplest. In the mentioned

sentences, Tommy and racoons represent the agent because they instigate the act

of driving and eating. However, agency focuses on the execution of the predicate,

not the situations that create the predicate or the argument. In the sentence The

terrorists held Tommy at gunpoint and forced him to drive the car, even though he

was underage, Tommy is still the agent of driving.

b. Author

The thematic role author is the primary executor that carries out acts for

noninternal reasons. The author has all the characteristics of an agent but is not the

direct cause of the act. Thus, it is commonly understood as the inactive cause. The

sentence The canoe floated down the river (Frawley, 1992: 206) provides a good

example. The noun phrase the canoe has the thematic role author because the

canoe does not have control over the floating. Moreover, the difference of the

thematic role author from agent can be seen in Bill floated down the river.

Because Bill directly affects the floating, Bill is the agent. However, if he is

dead—Bill’s body floated down the river—Bill’s body is the author.

Semantically, authors reign on a spectrum between agents and

instruments, which is the mean of predication. Agents are the direct instigators of

predicate. Instruments are the tools used by agents to carry out acts directly.

Authors are somewhere between the two: 1) authors carry out acts relatively

independently, but indirectly; 2) their relation to the action is not so dependent as


12

to deprive them of their effectuality. Thus, agency may be best understood as a

gradient of directness of execution of the predicate: agent > author > instrument.

Agents take a transitive marker on the verb: she/he killed Joe, or more

accurately: she/he made Joe dead. Authors are marked by a separate postposition:

liquor killed him/her, or more accurately she/he died from liquor (Frawley, 1992:

207). Therefore, sentences with agentive properties (?? He/she died from a bear)

or instruments (?? The glass broke from the axe) (Frawley, 1992: 208), in which

an axe semantically must be carried by an agent, cannot take the author

postposition.

c. Instrument

An argument, as the means by which a predicate is carried out, has the

thematic role instrument. Instruments might look like agents or authors because

the action is executed. However, unlike agents or authors, instruments have to be

acted upon by something else in order to partake in the circumstance. Instruments

apply no action of their own. The examples are Ellen cut the salami with the knife

and Bob succeeded through his father’s influence (Frawley, 1992: 208). The

knife and his father’s influence have the thematic role instrument.

d. Patient

The thematic role patient undergoes, is changed by, or is directly affected

by a predicate. A patient suffers the condition, or appears changed as the effect of

the predicate. The examples are The man cleaned the car and The boy broke the

glass (Frawley, 1992: 210). The argument the car and the glass have the thematic

role patient.


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e. Experiencer

The thematic role experiencer is affected by the predicate in the internal

state or constitution. The sentence Buddy smelled the flower (Frawley, 1992: 213)

can have either an experiencer or nonexperiencer reading. Bobby is the agent in a

situation where he goes out and sniffs the flowers. In another sense, the smell of

the flower swings by Buddy and enters his head. In this case, Buddy has no

volition but experiences the event. Therefore, Buddy is the experiencer.

f. Benefactive

The thematic role that derives actions or entities from the action of another

is called benefactive. For example, the sentence Dr. Frankenstein made his son a

monster (Frawley, 1992: 215) is ambiguous between a benefactive and a

nonbenefactive reading. On the nonbenefactive reading, Dr. Frankenstein’s son is

a patient for being converted into a monster. On the benefactive reading, Dr.

Frankenstein’s son comes into the possession of something because Dr.

Frankenstein brings it about as in ‘Dr. Frankenstein made a monster for his son.’

In this reading, his son is benefactive. Benefactives may be understood as

arguments essentially dependent on a surrogate. In this case it is Dr. Frankenstein,

who performs the required action so the subsequent action may result.

The surrogacy might be very strong that it prevents action by the

benefactive. The examples can be seen in the sentences Tom lost the game for his

team and Mary bought lunch for Bob (Frawley, 1992: 216). Tom is the one who

performs the act, and the team derives the result from his action. Also, Mary

performs the act, and Bob is the benefactive as he is prevented from doing the act


14

of paying due to Mary’s agency. Therefore, the examples demonstrate how

benefactives do not necessarily benefit from the surrogate actions of others.

Benefactives relate to the “benefit” of surrogate action, not the goodness of the

results. In this manner, benefactives are similar to instruments, in a way that

instruments are secondary agents, whereas benefactives are secondary recipients.

g. Theme

The thematic role theme is the displaced entity as the consequence of an

initiator’s influence and moves from a resting point along a route, often to another

resting point. The examples are Tom shot the arrow through the air and Bill

rolled the ball across the floor (Frawley, 1992: 218). As the displaced entities, the

arrow and the ball are the themes of the predicates. A theme, however, is similar

to patient in that each undergoes an act. A theme is not modified by the

displacement itself from the external force.

h. Source

The argument which makes reference to the point of origin of

displacement is called the source. The source is easily distinguished in motion

predicates. The examples are The cat leaped from the bag and I received a letter

from Mr. Smith (Frawley, 1992: 220). The bag is the site of origin of the cat’s

leaping, while Mr. Smith is the origin of the transfer of the letter. Furthermore,

sources can be found in predicates expressing actional and stative source, as in the

sentences The sun gives off heat and Wine can turn into vinegar (Frawley, 1992:

220). The sun and wine are the source even though there is no motion at all.


15

i. Goal

The argument which refers to the destination of displacement is called the

goal. The goals are clear in predicates of motion as in sentences My wife went to

England last summer and Bob ran to the corner (Frawley, 1992: 222). England

and the corner are the goals as they are the endpoints of the actions. Like sources,

goals are not limited only to motion predicates. The destination can be spatial or

nonspatial. The nonspatial example can be found in the sentence I told Ellen the

story (Frawley, 1992: 222) shows that Ellen is the goal of my words.

j. Locative

The locative denotes the spatial position of the predicate. Unlike the

theme, source or goal from the spatial roles that are concerned with the initial

point, destination, and displaced object, the locative denotes the fixed or static

position of a predicate. The examples are The cloud floated in the sky and I sat

behind Sally (Frawley, 1992: 224). The sky is the location for the floating, while

Sally is the locational reference point for the sitting.

k. Reason

The argument which indicates the prior conditions of a predication has the

thematic role reason. Reasons are placed on the contextual level and outside of

precise participant involvement of predication because reasons are linked to the

intention of the agents. The examples are I ran from fear and Bob jogs because of

his need to keep fit (Frawley, 1992: 225). Fear leads to and motives the running,

while the need to keep fit prompts the jogging. Like sources, reasons head to

events at the degree of contextually determined action. Unlike sources, reasons do


16

not essentially start the events. The motivational effects, though, can be tracked

down via the agent.

l. Purpose

If reasons might be seen as the motivational source, the result or

consequence of a predicate is called the purpose. The examples are I went to the

doctor for a checkup and Tom has a silk shirt for impressing his friends

(Frawley, 1992: 227). The checkup is the goal of going to the doctor, while

impressing his friends is the result of Tom’s having the silk shirt.

The table below summarizes the twelve thematic roles which have been

explained (Frawley, 1992: 197-228).

Table 2.1. Summary of 12 Thematic Roles

No Thematic Roles Definition Example

1

Participant

roles

Logical

actors

Agent

The deliberate

and active

instigator of the

predicate

Tommy drove the car

2 Author

The inactive

cause of the

predication

The canoe floated down

the river

3 Instrument

The means by

which a

predicate is

carried out

Ellen cut the

salami with

the knife

4

Logical

recipients

Patient

The argument

affected directly

by a predicate

The man

cleaned the

car

5 Experiencer

The argument

affected by the

predicate in the

internal state

Buddy smelled the

flower

6 Benefactive

The argument

deriving actions

from the actions

of another

Dr.

Frankenstein

made his son

a monster


17

7

Spatial

roles

Theme

The displaced

entity as the

consequence of

an initiator’s

influence

Tom shot the

arrow through the

air

8 Source

The point of

origin of

displacement

The cat leap

from the bag

9 Goal

The destination

of displacement

My wife went

to England

last summer

10

Nonparticipant roles

Locative

The argument

denoting the

fixed spatial

position of a

predicate

The cloud

floated in the

sky

11 Reason

The argument

indicating the

prior condition

of a predication

I ran from

fear

12 Purpose

The result of a

predicate

I went to the

doctor for a

checkup

3. Discourse Analysis

Discourse is a form of language use, and Discourse Analysis (DA) is the

analytical framework which was designed for scrutinizing concrete text and talk in

the communicative context (Rahimi and Riasati, 2011: 107). Fitch in Rahimi and

Riasati argues that the early DA concentrated on the internal structure of texts.

Halliday in Rahimi and Riasati maintains that texts are a process and a product

which are created, embedded, and interpreted in a specific social context.

According to Van Dijk and Fairclough in Rahimi and Riasati, texts are examined

based on three inseparable elements: language use, communication and interaction


18

or description (text), interpretation (pragmatics) and explanation (the social and

cultural context) (2011: 107).

Rahimi and Riasati argue that the modern DA is an interdisciplinary

approach, functioning at two macro and micro levels, integrating both linguistic

and social analysis (2011: 107). Discourses are seen as communicative events,

which contain certain beliefs, ideologies, identities, politics, and the like (Chilton

and Schauffner in Rahimi and Riasati, 2011: 107). Textualized or verbalized

statements of people can intend more than communicating what they say at the

surface level directly and explicitly. The most important matter is the social

information that is regularly communicated inexplicitly (Rahimi and Riasati,

2011: 107).

The aim of discourse analysis is “to show systematic links between texts,

discourse practices, and sociocultural practices” (Fairclough, 1995: 17). From this

perspective, the texts are analyzed together with the analysis of discourse

practices and sociocultural practices. Nonetheless, the focus is in the linguistic

aspect of the texts (Fairclough, 1995: 19).

The explanation on semantic analysis of discourse is proposed by Van

Dijk. Despite the number of semantic theories in the various disciplines, there are

some properties that can be the characteristics of semantic theories. The semantics

of natural-language utterances, which is discourses, are the focus to be taken into

account. Their component elements, such as words, phrases, clauses, sentences,

paragraphs, and other identifiable discourse units, are included to be scrutinized

(1985: 103).


19

The most general concept to denote a semantic theory is the concept of

interpretation. Interpretation is the process of assignment: to objects of kind X,

they assign objects of kind Y. Objects of kind X are usually called expressions.

The kind of interpretation whereby meanings are assigned to expressions is

usually called intentional. Expressions with a given meaning may denote some

object in “the world.” Thus, to deliver an extensional interpretation of a discourse

is to specify what such a discourse is about, that is, the individuals, properties, or

states of affairs that constitute its numerous referents in some formal model of a

possible world. Discourse semantics, hence, should be both intentional and

extensional, which is about meanings and reference. In order to interpret a

discourse, that is, to assign its meaning and reference, a substantial amount of

world knowledge is required. Such knowledge can only be partly specified within

linguistics or grammar, namely, in the lexicon (Van Dijk, 1985: 103-105).

4. Language and Ideology

An ideology, according to Althusser in Malrieu, is a system (with its own

logic and rigor) of representations (images, myths, ideas or concepts), having an

existence and a historical role within a given society (1999: 12). Malrieu argues

that the best characterization of ideology is the encounter of a mutual recognition

between social formation and a discourse. An ideology is a theory of the social

formation that will make it real, and thus true. Ideology contains a doctrine, and as

Shils argue in Malrieu ideological doctrines are greatly resistant to innovation.

The change of ideology tends to come from external factors (1999: 10).


20

Further, Althusser argues in Malrieu that it is not their real condition of

existence, their real world, which are represented by people in the ideology.

Ideology is primarily their relation to these conditions of existence which is

represented to them (1999: 17). It is in their relation that the cause which must

account for the imaginary deformation of the ideological representation of the real

world, is contained (Althusser in Malrieu 1999: 17).

Language has an essential role in the ideological process (Brognolli, 1992:

83). It is the link between persons' knowledge of the world and their social

practices. Language mediates individuals' thought and behavior. Kress and Hodge

in Brognolli argue that linguistics might achieve a wide scope so as to help

individuals understand each other and the world in which they live (1992: 83).

Likewise, Hodge, Kress and Jones in Brognolli highlight the importance of

language for the study of ideology.

Ideologies are sets of ideas involved in the ordering of experience, making

sense of the world. This order and sense is partial and particular. The

systems of ideas which constitute ideologies are expressed through

language. Language supplies the models and categories of thought, and in

part people’s experience of the world is through language (1992: 83).

Further, Fiorin in Brognolli (1992: 83) argues that the ideological

characteristic of language does not lie in the linguistic system, which is

autonomous, but in the use of language. As products of their relations with others

and of their comprehension of these relations, individuals understand their

experiences according to their position in the economic structure of the society in

which they live. Thus, as Fowler in Brognolli proposes, representing people's


21

minds and consequently expressing different worldviews, language reflects the

structure of the society in which it is used (1992: 83-84).

Language is not created in a context free vacuum, but in discourse contexts

that are composed with the ideology of social systems and institutions (Rahimi

and Riasati, 2011: 111). Because language functions in social dimension, it is apt

to reflect and construct ideology. Therefore, investigation on discursive

manifestations is needed to know what the ideologies are, how they work, and

how they are created, changed, and reproduced. Discursive practices are attached

in social structures, which are mostly created, validated, adopted, estimated and

conformed in and through language, which is called discourse (Rahimi and

Riasati, 2011: 111).

5. Language and Newspaper

Conboy believes that newspapers todays are featured with the latest

linguistic accommodation and influences from changing social and commercial

pressures (2010: 2). Newspapers afford an elaborated form of conversation with

their audiences, which is designed to be more than a dry report of events.

Newspaper of the present is required to afford a version of that daily conversation

in an environment with other technologies competing to deliver that sense of

communal voice. The language of newspaper adapts to the existence of many

other forms of contemporary communication flow (Conboy, 2010: 2-3).

There have been many studies on language of news media and its social

implication, while recent studies on newspaper focus to establish a linguistic

importance of the rise of periodical publications in England (Conboy, 2010: 3-4).


22

Conboy proposes a bridge between the two traditions of journalism studies and

discourse analysis and one which can offer an analysis of the impact of newspaper

language over time (2010: 4). Language as the forefront of the study of

newspapers strengthens the point made by Harris in Conboy (2010: 4) that

. . . a concept of a language cannot stand isolated in an intellectual no-

man’s land. It is inevitably part of some more intricate complex of views

about how certain verbal activities stand in relation to other human

activities, and hence, ultimately, about man’s [sic] place in society.

However, Cameron in Conboy (2010: 4) articulates the restrictions of the

trap identified as the ‘language reflects society’ model

The first problem is its dependence on a naïve and simplistic social theory

. . . Secondly, there is the problem of how to relate the social to the

linguistic (however we conceive the social). The ‘language reflects

society’ account implies that social structures somehow exist before

language, which simply ‘reflects’ or ‘expresses’ the more fundamental

categories of the social . . . language . . . [is a] part of the social, interacting

with other modes of behaviour and just as important as any of them.

This restricted view is, according to Conboy, a regular cliché within lazy-minded

interpretations of the role of the newspaper itself as ‘mirroring society’ (2010: 4).

Hodge and Kress in Conboy reestablishes language as a centrally important social

intervention to the study of the newspaper, arguing that language is “a key

instrument in socialization, and the means whereby society forms and permeates

the individual’s consciousness . . . signifying social behavior” (2010: 4).

Conboy, citing many contemporary accounts of language and society,

argues that language is strongly involved in power structures in society (2010: 5).

Bakhtin in Conboy offers one of the most subtle and persuasive explanations of

how language is employed as a key position of struggle between disputing social

forces: all of which wish to force meaning to their own purposes and hence give


23

direction to interaction within their own desired definitions in order to achieve

their own goals (2010: 5).

There has been a continuous struggle between opposing claims on the

functions and aims of newspapers (Conboy, 2010: 6). Accounts of newspapers

which prioritize both their commercial interests and their related reputation for

being watchdog to scrutiny of the powerful in society have outweighed in

historical measurements of the newspaper through history. There remains to be a

set of varying, social and political claims on the language and function of the

newspaper, yet they continue guarded within a set of dominant perspectives and

within historically specific social formations (Conboy, 2010: 7).

Further, Conboy argues one of the advantages in regarding newspaper

language as a discourse is that it assists us to see news production and distribution

as creating new forms of power and new forms of access to representation.

Journalism has never only questioned a political power outside its own range of

influence. It has always been profoundly involved in the establishment of power

structures, principally in public communication. What Said has expressed related

to writing has resonance for the formation of the discourse of the newspaper

Writing is no private exercise of a free scriptive will but rather the

activation of an immensely complex tissue of forces for which a text is a

place among other places where the strategies of control in society are

conducted (cited in Conboy, 2010: 11).

C. Theoretical Framework

There are two theories employed to answer the first problem formulation

of this study. The first theory is semantics, including lexical and phrasal or


24

sentential semantics. Lexical semantics is useful to examine the predicates, while

the phrasal or sentential semantics is utilized to understand the phrases or

sentences that contain the noun phrase of Indonesian government. The second

theory is thematic roles. It is useful to identify what thematic roles assigned to

Indonesian government.

Three theories are employed to answer the second problem formulation.

Theory of ideology is employed to analyze the ideologies which are seen from the

thematic roles. The semantic analysis of the texts helps the thematic roles in

revealing the ideologies. The theories of discourse analysis and language and

newspaper are used to comprehend the relation between the texts, the real event of

forest fires, and the society.


25

CHAPTER III

METHODOLOGY

A. Object of the Study

This study examined three articles on the forest fires in Indonesia in 2015

featured in The Guardian online newspaper. The articles studied are three opinion

articles. The first article was written by George Monbiot, an editor of The

Guardian who routinely wrote in the environment section. The next opinion

article was written by Joshua Oppenheimer, a filmmaker of The Act of Killing and

The Look of Silence. The last article for this study was written by Lindsey Allen,

the Executive Director of Rainforest Action Network and a veteran environmental

and social justice activist.

The length of the articles varies from around 520 words to 1200 words. All

articles have references to Indonesian government. The thematic roles of

government can be found in clauses or sentences. All articles were published in

www.theguardian.com. Furthermore, the articles were not published at the same

date. Firstly, the article by Monbiot was published on October 30th, 2015.

Secondly, the one by Oppenheimer was published on May 3rd, 2016. Lastly, the

one by Allen was published on October 23rd, 2015.

B. Approach of the Study

The approach of this study in revealing the ideologies was discourse

analysis. The basis of the analysis was semantics. The purpose of this study was to


http://www.theguardian.com/

26

find out the roles of the Indonesian government in the forest fires. Thus, thematic

roles fit with this study. In order to reveal the roles of government connected with

the context, discourse analysis was applied. Discourse analysis, as Fairclough

defines as an effort to explain “systematic links between texts, discourse practices,

and sociocultural practices” (1995: 16-17), examined the thematic roles of

Indonesian government further. The thematic roles of Indonesian government

were related to the roles of government in Indonesia. Furthermore, the roles of

Indonesian government, which have been fulfilled or should have been fulfilled,

showed the ideological position of the articles towards Indonesian government.

Therefore, the connection between the text and the real catastrophe of forest fires

could be identified. The ideologies evolved in the government’s roles were

revealed consequently.

C. Method of the Study

To conduct this study, two steps were taken. The first step was collecting

the data, and the second step was analyzing the data. The steps are outlined as

follows.

1. Data Collection

The data from the articles were collected by finding the phrases or

sentences that contain the reference of Indonesian government in the three articles

of The Guardian online newspaper mentioned above. There are thirty references

to Indonesian government from all articles which have thematic roles. They are

marked in bold. Some are expressed directly as government, some are expressed


27

more specifically by mentioning their names or the position they hold, and some

others are expressed in pronouns.

Purposive sampling was used for this study. Purposive sample includes

subjects which are chosen for specific qualities and removes those which do not

meet these criteria (Wimmer and Dominick, 2011: 94). The data selected for this

study were particularly The Guardian’s opinion articles about forest fires in

Indonesia. Any other article about irrelevant topic was not included in this study.

The system of data collection was arranged as follows. First, the articles

were read to understand the whole meaning. Later, the reading was focused only

on the arguments of Indonesian government. The collected data for this study

were the clauses or sentences containing the arguments of Indonesian government.

The data were sorted according to the article they belong.

Indonesian government is typically presidential, which branches into the

executive, the legislative, and the judicial (Handoyo, 2015: 126). The executive

branch is the president and vice-president of Indonesia with the appointed cabinet.

The legislative branch is the People’s Consultative Assembly, which consists of

the Regional Representative Council and the House of Representatives. The

judicial branch is the governments connected with legal judgment, which are the

Indonesian Supreme Court, the Constitutional Court, and the Judicial

Commission.

According to Handoyo, government can be interpreted in the broader sense

as a complete nation consisting of the executive, the legislative, and the judicial

(2015: 119). Furthermore, government can be interpreted in the narrow sense as it


28

refers only to the executive, who exercises powers to execute the laws (2015:

199).

2. Data Analysis

To answer the first problem, the collected data were examined separately

based on the article. At first, the clauses or sentences which contain the argument

of Indonesian government were sorted based on which article they belong. After

that, they were classified according to their thematic roles. Later, the explanation

on the classification followed. The Eleventh Edition of Concise Oxford English

Dictionary assisted in finding the lexical meaning to determine the classification

of the thematic roles.

To answer the second problem, the three articles were examined

altogether. The result of data findings determined the ideologies concerning the

Indonesian government. Discourse analysis was employed for the analysis.

The aim of discourse analysis is to reveal the connection between text and

sociocultural practice. Along this line, this study examines the relation between

the thematic roles and the sociocultural dimensions to reveal the ideologies of the

texts. The thematic roles scrutinized here belong to arguments of Indonesian

government. Thus, the revealed ideologies are about the Indonesian government.


29

CHAPTER IV

ANALYSIS RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

This chapter is divided into two major parts. The first of the analysis

discusses thematic roles assigned to Indonesian government in the three opinion

articles of The Guardian. Lexical and sentential semantic analysis is utilized to

find meaning of the words which surrounds the argument “Indonesian

government”. This part answers the first question in the problem formulation. The

second part discusses the ideologies of the articles which are shown from the

thematic roles and the semantic analysis. This part answers the second question.

A. Thematic Roles of Indonesian government in The Guardian’s Articles

This section covers thematic roles of Indonesian government in three

articles. Monbiot’s “Indonesia is burning. So why the world is looking away?” is

referred as Article 1, Oppenheimer’s “Why today’s global warming has roots in

Indonesia’s genocidal past” is referred as Article 2, and Allen’s “Is Indonesia's

fire crisis connected to the palm oil in our snack food?” is referred as Article 3.

The numerical reference to each article is useful to lessen the long titles when

referring them in this chapter.

The thematic roles are counted mostly from the predicates assigned to

Indonesian government, not limited to the appearance of the argument Indonesian

government in the article. For example, if a compound sentence has one argument

of Indonesian government and two predicates belong to the same argument, so the


30

argument has two thematic roles. The thematic role depends on the relation

between the argument and each predicate. The arguments listed here are the ones

related to Indonesian government.

Thematic role agent is the most frequent thematic role assigned to

Indonesian government. There are also author, patient, source and goal, but their

number is insignificant compared to the number of thematic role agent. The table

below summarizes the result of data findings of the articles.

Table 4.1. The Summary of Thematic Roles of the Indonesian Government

Thematic

Roles

Article 1 Article 2 Article 3

Number Percentage Number Percentage Number Percentage

Agent 11 79% 15 88% 6 100%

Author 1 7% - - - -

Patient - - 1 6% - -

Source 1 7% - - - -

Goal 1 7% 1 6% - -

TOTAL 14 100% 17 100% 6 100%

1. Thematic Roles in Article 1

Article 1 has four kinds of thematic roles assigned to the Indonesian

government. They are agent, author, source and goal. The thematic role agent is

assigned eleven times to seven arguments. On the other hand, the thematic role

author, source and goal are assigned to one argument each. In total, there are

fourteen thematic roles in the article.

a. Agent

Agency shows “volition, will, intentionality, and responsibility” of the

argument of the predicate (Frawley, 1992: 203). The following is the first

sentence with the thematic role agent in the article.


31

1.a.1) The President, Joko Widodo, is—or want to be—a democrat.

The predicate “want” has “the president, Joko Widodo” as its argument. The word

“want” has the meaning of to “have desire to possess or do something” (COED,

11th Ed.). In order to be a democrat, the president must be actively, not only

decide, but also show, prove, or at least try to do so. The desire on certain politic

ideals of a politician, which is a president in this case, can be recognized by the

public only if they show some efforts.

Democrat is “a supporter of democracy” (COED, 11th Ed.). If President

Widodo is seen as a democrat, he is expected to govern in equal treatment of all

members of the organization as they also have right to participate in making

decision. This sentence shows that people believe President Widodo to maintain

democracy.

The next sentence still mentions Widodo for the argument of Indonesian

government.

1.a.2) But, he presides over a nation in which fascism and corruption

flourish.

The predicate “preside” has the argument “he”, which refers to the president.

“Preside” means to “be in a position of authority in a meeting, court, etc”, while

the phrasal verb “preside over” means to “be in charge of (a situation)” (COED,

11th Ed.). Here the agency shows responsibility as the president is in charge of

Indonesia, which is described in the article as a country with fascism and

corruption. This sentence contradicts the previous sentence of the expectation to

President Widodo with the challenges which he meets. This sentence also shows


32

that the responsibility of the president is not easy because there are problems,

which are fascism and corruption, to solve.

The next argument for Indonesian government is a noun phrase which

contains a predicate.

1.a.3) Those who commit crimes against humanity don’t hesitate to

commit crimes against nature.

The sentence contains three predicates. The first one is “commit” which means to

“perpetrate or carry out (a mistake, crime, or immoral act)” (COED, 11th Ed.). The

thematic role for the predicate is agent. The second predicate is “hesitate” which

means to “pause in indecision” (COED, 11th Ed.). This also gives the argument

thematic role agent. The last is the same with the first predicate, which is

“commit”. The thematic role for this predicate is agent.

Widodo appears again as shown below with three verbs within the clause.

1.a.4) Though Joko Widodo seems to want to stop the burning…

The first verb “seem”, however, is not an action verb, but a linking verb. It does

not show action but connects the argument of the predicate to additional

information about the subject. The following verb “want” is an action verb. The

thematic role of the argument related to the predicate is agent. As it has been

explained above, the predicate “want” corresponds to agency. Another predicate

of agency in the clause is “stop”, whose meaning is to “cause to come to an end”

or to “discontinue an action, practice, or habit” (COED, 11th Ed.). It indicates that

Widodo as the active entity to make the burning come to end.


33

The next argument shifts to government officials as stated in the following

sentence.

1.a.5) Government officials have responded angrily, arguing that such

restraint impedes the country’s development.

There are two predicates in the sentence, “respond” and “argue”, belonging to the

same argument. The predicate “respond” has the meaning of “say or do something

in reply or as a reaction” (COED, 11th Ed.). Meanwhile, the predicate “argue” is

followed by further explanation on why they respond in such manner. “Argue” is

another active predicate in the sentence, which means to “exchange conflicting

views in a heated way” or to “give reasons or cite evidence in support of an idea,

action, or theory” (COED, 11th Ed.). This displays that “government officials” are

the executor of the predicates “argue” and “respond”. The argument carries out

the act deliberately and intentionally. As the one who causes the acts, thus the

argument is responsible for the acts of responding and arguing.

The next predicate is “meet” as seen in the sentence below.

1.a.6) On Monday, Widodo was in Washington, meeting Barack Obama.

The predicate “meet”, whose meaning is to “arrange or happen to come into the

presence or company of ” someone (COED, 11th Ed.), shows volition, will, and

intention, in this sentence, of both political figures. The predicate “meet” does not

assign the arguments with thematic role author, as if they run into each other in a

random event. Instead, the meeting is political as it is done by the two as leaders

of a nation. Both must have been appointed the meeting and followed the

agreement afterwards. Thus, both arguments, Obama and Widodo, has thematic


34

role agent. Barack Obama, the former President of the United States, was a

prominent world leader. The meeting itself also shows that the problem has

already become the international attention.

The last predicate of an agent in this article is “ignore”, as stated in the

clause below.

1.a.7) Governments ignore issues…

The clause has general references. However, by looking at the context of the

article, more specific references can be concluded. Indonesian government is

mostly mentioned throughout the article. Thus, it is appropriate to conclude that

“governments” in the sentence refers to Indonesian government. In addition, the

“issues” here refers to forest fires in accordance to the main topic of the article.

The predicate “ignore” has meaning to “disregard intentionally” (COED,

11th Ed.). From the lexical meaning itself, there is an obvious intentionality within

the predicate “ignore”. In addition, the predicate “ignore” suggests that the

meaning is beyond the ignorance of the issues. It also indicates the lacking of

significant treatment towards the issues from the government. The government’s

failing to consider can be observed when they do not bring some actions

concerning the significant issues. The absence of action shows that the

government has the thematic role agent.

b. Author

Thematic role author is known as the inactive cause because the primary

executor that carries out acts for noninternal reasons (Frawley, 1992: 206). The

following is the sentence with the thematic role author.


35

1.b.1) His government’s policies are contradictory: among them are new

subsidies for palm oil production that make further burning almost

inevitable

The argument which is involved Indonesian government is mentioned

twice in the sentence. The first is “his government’s policies” which indicates

policies in general, and the second is “among them” which indicates specific

policies regarding to the causes of forest fires. In other words, some of Indonesian

government’s, specifically which give financial support for palm oil production,

contribute to forest fires. Even though there are two arguments, there is only one

thematic role. The word “contradictory” is not an event; therefore the first

argument does not have the thematic role from the predicate “is” (Frawley, 1992:

199). The second argument has the thematic role from its predicate. The predicate

is “make” whose meaning is to “bring about or perform; cause” (COED, 11th Ed.).

Policies of government are not human, so they do not have volition or will in

doing the act. Therefore, the thematic role of the argument is author.

c. Source

A source has a critical merit of being “a point of origin”, and the motion

involved “may be abstract” (Frawley, 1992: 220). The following is the clause that

has the thematic role source.

1.c.1) …leaders of the death squads that helped murder a million people

during Suharto’s terror in the 1960s, with the approval of the west,

have since prospered through other forms of organised crime,

including illegal deforestation.


36

In the article, “the leader of the death squads” is identified as the wrongdoer for

the genocide in 1960s. They executed the murders in the era of Suharto, the back

then president. In this reading, they have thematic role agent from the predicate

“help”. However, since they are not Indonesian government but civil people who

help the murder, their thematic role is not counted in this study. Furthermore, the

leaders of the death squads continue doing crimes in other forms, such as illegal

deforestation.

The concept of source here is the source of crimes. The crimes committed

by the same people indicate that injustice and legal violation keep happening in

Indonesia. The starting point of their major crimes is in the Suharto’s era. Since

the genocide of 1960s, Indonesian government shows reluctance in bringing the

wrongdoers to the court. By now, the wrongdoers commit other crimes. Suharto’s

terror, thus, is assigned to the thematic role source.

d. Goal

Goals, whose nature is “the endpoints of the events”, are not limited to

motion predicates (Frawley, 1992: 222). The argument with the thematic role goal

in the manner of nonspatial conveyance is stated in the following clause.

1.d.1) Obama, the official communiqué recorded, “welcomed President

Widodo’s recent policy actions to combat and prevent forest

fires”.

The predicate “welcome” carries the meaning as to “be glad to receive or

heard of” something (COED, 11th Ed.). Based on this definition, there is a sense of

approval in welcoming the policy actions. Obama is the source of the approval,


https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/10/26/joint-statement-united-states-america-and-republic-indonesia

37

while President Widodo’s recent police actions are the goal. From an agentive

reading, Obama is the agent, instead of the source. However, Widodo’s policy

actions still have the thematic role goal of the welcoming.

2. Thematic roles in Article 2

Article 2 has three kinds of thematic roles, which are agent, patient, and

goal. The thematic role agent is assigned to fourteen arguments. The thematic role

patient and goal are assigned to one argument each. In total, there are seventeen

thematic roles in the article.

a. Agent

Agency often appears in Article 2 as well. There are two predicates of the

same argument in the sentence shown below.

2.a.1) In 1965, the Indonesian army organised paramilitary death squads

and exterminated who had hastily been identified as enemies of

General Suharto’s new military dictatorship

There are two predicates explaining the argument the Indonesian army.

The Indonesian army is an apparatus of Indonesian government. As the president

is its commander-in-chief, the Indonesian army follows order from the president.

The first predicate is “organize” has the meaning of “arrange systematically”

(COED, 11th Ed.). Organizing or arranging something means causing something

comes into existence. The adverb “systemically” shows that the action is done

with intention. The thematic role of the predicate organize is agent. The second

predicate is “exterminate”, which means “destroy completely” or “eradicate”

(COED, 11th Ed.). When someone exterminates something until nothing is left, it


38

needs volition and will to achieve that. Therefore, the thematic role is agent. In

addition, the phrase that mentions the government, General Suharto’s new

military dictatorship, in the clause is not analyzed in this study because it does not

have any predicate or thematic role.

Below is a sentence with three predicates that give thematic role agent.

2.a.2) Those who ought to police the country – the courts, civil servants

and elected officials – are often the very ones who encourage, and

profit from, its ruination.

All of them have the arguments, which are referred as the pronoun “those” and

“ones”, as agents. The first predicate is “police”, which means to “control and

maintain law and order in (an area)” (COED, 11th Ed.). It indicates responsibility

which must be followed by active and concrete actions. The second is

“encourage”, which means to “give support, confidence, or hope to” or to “help or

stimulate the development of ” something (COED, 11th Ed.). This predicates

indicates volition and intention as well as responsibility with the development of

the ruination.

The last is “profit”, which means to “benefit, especially financially”

(COED, 11th Ed.). Despite of its meaning of benefitting, the predicate does not put

the argument into the thematic role benefactive. It is important to benefactive that

the state of benefitting is the result of another’s act (Frawley, 1992: 216). The

advantage comes from the argument’s own act, not the other. Thus, the thematic

role fit in this sentence is the agent.


39

Widodo remains the agent of the next predicate, which is “make good” in

the following sentence.

2.a.3) Nor has he yet made good on his campaign promise to punish

human rights abuses, including the 1965 genocide.

The phrase “make good” means to “be successful” (COED, 11th Ed.). The

sentence begins with the adverb “nor” which indicate a further negative sentence.

Widodo, which is referred as “he”, fails to fulfilled his promise during the

presidential campaign to punish human right abuses. In order to fulfill his

promise, he must instigate some active actions. Another predicate in the sentence,

“punish”, also has the argument as an agent. To “punish” has the meaning of to

“inflict a penalty on as retribution for an offence” (COED, 11th Ed.). In order to

punish someone, an action is must be done intentionally and consciously by

reason of the offence they have made.

The next agency can be found in a sentence containing two clauses. The

first clause has two predicates as shown below.

2.a.4) He has refused to establish a truth commission

The argument “he” still refers to Widodo. The first predicate “refuse” has

meaning of to “indicate unwillingness to do something” (COED, 11th Ed.). Two

aspects of agency are identified. Firstly, the argument must instigate an action to

indicate the refusal. Secondly, there is unwillingness, meaning the state of being

not eager, which is the opposite of will. The second is “establish”, which explains

the preceding predicate “refuse”. The predicate “establish” has meaning of to “set

up on a firm or permanent basis” or to “initiate or bring about” (COED, 11th Ed.).


40

The last clause of the sentence as shown below has the predicate

“consider” which corresponds to the same argument, Widodo, from the previous

clause.

2.a.5) …let alone consider proceedings against perpetrators.

The predicate “consider” has a meaning of to “think carefully about” something

(COED, 11th Ed.). If someone considers something, they must instigate the

thinking. Even though considering is not an act which can be seen physically, the

will to instigate the action makes the argument “he” falls into the category of

agency.

Another predicate is “announce” which is stated in the sentence below.

2.a.6) …the Indonesian government recently announced that man-made

fires in the rainforests have begun again – and burn today.

The predicate “announce” has the meaning of to “make a formal public

declaration about a fact, occurrence, or intention” (COED, 11th Ed.). The predicate

is required two obligatory arguments. The obligatory arguments are the

Indonesian government, who is the one to instigate the declaration, and the

declaration itself, which is the information about the man-made fires.

The next sentence containing argument of agent is shown below.

2.a.7) Just this month Indonesian officials convened, for the first time

ever, a symposium to examine the killings.

The predicate “convene”, which means to “come or bring together for a meeting”

(COED, 11th Ed.), has the argument “Indonesian officials”. They, after an


http://qz.com/600732/land-clearing-fires-cost-indonesia-lives-and-16-billion-last-year-and-theyre-starting-again/

http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21697252-after-half-century-indonesia-opens-debate-about-its-darkest-year-open-wounds

41

agreement is made among them, come together to the symposium. This denotes

volition and will of agency.

The next sentence contains the predicate “attend” with several arguments,

beside the Indonesian government, mentioned.

2.a.8) Members of President Widodo’s cabinet, Indonesia’s attorney

general, police chief, and justice minister attended the conference

– as did NGO activists, former military leaders, survivors and

families of those killed.

The predicate “attend” shares a similar meaning with “convene”, which is to “be

present at” (COED, 11th Ed.) the conference mentioned earlier. In order to be

present there, volition and will are required. Thus, the thematic role of the

argument “President Widodo’s cabinet, Indonesia’s attorney general” and “justice

minister” is agent.

The last clause containing the argument as agent in the article is stated

below.

2.a.9) The government refused to apologise….

The predicate “refuse”, as already explained above, denotes aspects of agency, is

followed by the predicate “apologize”. The predicate “apologize” has a meaning

of to “express regret for something that one has done wrong” (COED, 11th Ed.). In

expressing the regret, aspects of agency, such as volition, will, and intention, are

required.


42

b. Patient

A patient is “directly affected by a predicate” (Frawley, 1992: 210). The

only argument with the thematic role patient of the article is stated in the

following clause.

2.b.1) Even President Joko Widodo, who was elected for his reformist

credentials…

The predicate “elect”, in a passive from, is assigned to “who” which refers to

“President Joko Widodo”. To be elected means that to be chosen “to hold a

position, especially public office, by voting” (COED, 11th Ed.). Widodo comes

out changed, from the governor of Jakarta to the president of Indonesia, after he is

elected as the president.

c. Goal

Indonesian government has the thematic role gain in the Article 2. The

clause is stated below.

2.c.1) …recently we have seen mounting public pressure on the

government.

The argument “the government” stands as the goal of “mounting public pressure”.

It is not concisely stated where the pressure is from. However, the adjective of the

noun, “public”, suggests a paraphrase as in “the pressure from the public is

addressed at the government”. Thus, here the source of the pressure is the public.

The government as the goal is denoted by the preposition on. This implies the

government holds responsibility so the government becomes the target of the

mounting public pressure.


43

3. Thematic roles in Article 3

Unlike the previous articles, Article 3 only has one kind of thematic role,

which is agent. In total, there are six thematic roles. There are three sentences with

the thematic role agent. However, only the clauses with Indonesian government

are shown here. The following is the first clause of the article.

3.a.1) …but the players involved, from the Indonesian government,

commodity producers and traders, to Western snack food

companies, have so far largely failed to connect the dots to strike at

the core of the problem.

The predicate of the Indonesian government is “fail”, which means to “be

unsuccessful in an undertaking” or “be unable to meet the standard set by”

(COED, 11th Ed.). Failing, although the argument does not achieve the goal set by,

means that there are some aspects of agency there. Although the Indonesian

government might not have intention to fail, they have responsibility for the

failing.

In one reading, the Indonesian government is the experiencer as they

undergo the failure uncontrollably and lack of volition (Frawley, 1992: 214). They

have no will to fail and do not initiate the event. Some important aspects of

agency are absence here, which evokes that the thematic role is experiencer.

However, the main nature of agency remains as the Indonesian

government is the direct cause of the failing. They do not receive the failure from

external factors. Although they, for example, lack of capability or knowledge to

do something, they are still the actor causing the event. Their failing suggests that


44

there are some unachieved standards, which are explained in the following

predicates of the sentence in the form of to-infinitives.

The predicate “connect” is formed in a phrasal verb, which means “to

connect the dots”. It is a metaphor to illustrate an ability or inability to find the big

picture in a mass of data. Finding the big picture is required will and intention,

which are the aspects of agency. Another predicate is “strike”, which means to hit

or kick. It is also a metaphor to say that the Indonesian government needs to know

the core of the problems.

The next clause has two predicates of the Indonesian government, which

are “stop” and “issue”.

3.a.2) This will require the Indonesian government to stop issuing

permits on peat

As it has been explained above, “stop” carries some aspects of agency. The

second is “issue”. Here “issue” means to “supply or distribute for use or sale”

(COED, 11th Ed.). In order to supply permits, the government has the volition,

will, and intentionality.

The last predicate is “prosecute” as it is stated in the following sentence.

3.a.3) The Indonesian government must aggressively prosecute

offending companies.

Prosecuting the offending companies is not something that the government has

done. It is a suggestion of what the government should do. The predicate

“prosecute” has a meaning of to “institute or conduct legal proceedings against”


45

something (COED, 11th Ed.). It denotes that the government has the violation and

responsibility upon the offending companies.

B. Ideologies in Indonesian government in The Guardian’s Articles

This part covers ideologies found in the opinion articles from the thematic

roles of Indonesian government and the lexical and sentential semantic analysis.

There are two ideologies, which are responsibility and warning. These two

ideologies are under the ideology of democratic government, which government

has purposes of maintaining order, providing public goods, and promoting

equality.

1. Responsibility

The first ideology related to Indonesian government in The Guardian’s

opinion articles on forest fires is responsibility. It is the result of many arguments

of Indonesian government that has thematic role agent. This finding shows that

they hold the active role in instigating the events or predicates. Moreover, the

lexical and sentential analysis supports the ideology of responsibility. This

ideology advocates that Indonesian government has responsibility for the forest

fires.

As it adapts the definition of the word “responsibility” from Oxford

Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English (2005), here the responsibility

is divided into three parts, which are responsibility due to the position of the

Indonesian government, responsibility to take care of the forest fires, and


46

responsibility as the blame due to indirect involvement. There is also

responsibility in the sense of supports from the United States of America.

Firstly, the government has the authority on this matter. In other words,

they have duty to manage the forest fires in the first place. The predicate “want”

in Article 1 (see 1.a.1) shows that the public sees President Joko Widodo as a

democrat from his political movement. A democrat is “a supporter of democracy”,

and democracy is closely related to “egalitarian” which is an adjective “believing

in the principle that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and

opportunities” (COED, 11th Ed.). President Widodo is expected to have heard the

voice of his people and advocate equal rights and opportunities. Another predicate

“want” (see 1.a.4) also implies that President has the responsibility to stop the

burning due to his political position.

The predicates “preside over” in Article 1 and “(be) elected” in Article 2,

which are assigned to President Widodo, show that he has been chosen to be in

charge in Indonesia. Although the thematic roles are different – on the former

predicate, Widodo was an agent and on the latter a patient – both suggest that he

becomes the person who has responsibility over Indonesia. However, Indonesia is

referred as “a nation in which fascism and corruption flourish”. This is related to

the previous sentence which shows that President Widodo, as democrat, faces

some challenges in his governing.

The predicate “fail” in Article 3 assigned to Indonesian government as an

agent shows that the government is unable to meet the standard set by. The


47

obligation to meet the standard shows that Indonesian government is responsible

to meet the standard. It is their duty to be able to meet the standard.

The responsibility due to the position can be seen from the agency of

Indonesian government in the predicate “ignore” in Article 1. When government

disregards a case intentionally, it can make the similar case happens for repeated

times. The same thing applies to Indonesian governments concerning the forest

fires. If Indonesian government ignores the case, which is dangerous to nature as

forest fires occur again in the future. However, this proves that Indonesian

government has the responsibility not to ignore, or in other word to consider, this

issue because it needs to be taken seriously to prevent further damages from

happening in the future.

The agency of Indonesian government in the predicate “announce” in

Article 2 shows that Indonesian government has the responsibility to give a formal

statement about facts on forest fires in Indonesia. This responsibility comes from

their position as the entity that governs the nation. Thus, this is one of their

responsibilities that Indonesian government has done.

Secondly, Indonesian government is responsible to do something

particular due to the forest fires. This responsibility can be seen in Indonesian

government’s agency. The predicate “stop” in Article 1 shows that government

should end the burning forest. The next predicate from Article 2, “police”, shows

that Indonesian government should be the entity in controlling and maintaining

law and order.


48

Indonesian government has the thematic role agent for both predicates

“connect” and “strike” in Article 3. The predicate “connect” in the idiom “connect

the dots” shows that Indonesian government should understand the relationship

among the factors causing the forest fires. Another predicate, “strike”, shows that

Indonesian government should hit or solve the problem. Indonesian government

should discover the cause in order to stop and even prevent the burning in the

future.

In Article 3, Indonesian government appears again as an agent with the

predicate “stop”. It shows that Indonesian government should no longer “issue

permits on peat”. Indonesian government has the authority to stop giving permits.

Furthermore, Indonesian government also has the moral obligation to do so in

order to reduce the risk of forest fires in the future.

The predicate “prosecute” in Article 3 displays another responsibility of

Indonesian government. As the authority, Indonesian government should take the

companies who break the law to the court. It is also show how Indonesian

government is responsible to the entities who contributed to the risk of forest fires.

Thirdly, Indonesian government is also to blame for the forest fires. This

develops from the agency of Indonesian government in the certain events. The

events show that Indonesian government is partly involved in increasing the the

risk of the forest fires. The participation, which is referred as involvement here, is

depicted in three types, which are indirect cause, direct cause, and gaining benefit.

Before going to the involvement of Indonesian government to forest fires,

it is worth noting that the cause of massive forest fires is complex. Destroying the


49

forest with fire in the heat of El Niño is reckoned as one of the main causes. No

member of Indonesian government, however, is depicted to literally burn the

forest with the fire. In this study, the scale of directness of Indonesian

government’s involvement in the forest fires does not start for example from the

firestarter. The directness is based on the comparison of the actions, derived from

the predications, of Indonesian government in the articles, which range from

inciting deforestation in any kind of way to giving permission to clear the land

with fires.

Indonesian government indirectly causes the forest fires. It can be seen

from the predicate “make” in Article 1 with the thematic role agent. The predicate

does not belong to the government as institution but to the government’s policies.

Some government’s policies make the burning more likely to happen. Indonesian

government causes its contribution to forest fires by giving subsidies to palm oil

production. Palm oil companies are infamous for burning forest to clear the land.

This doing puts forest at risk of uncontrollably massive fire. Therefore, Indonesian

government and palm oil companies share the blame in forest fires, which means

Indonesian government is responsible for forest fires.

The involvement of Indonesian government as the indirect cause of forest

fires is shown in the predicate “respond” and “argue” in Article 1. Palm oil

companies often clear the land with this method. Some companies have promised

to stop destroying the forest. However, Indonesian government seems to defend

the deforestation. Not only they betray their responsibility to preserve nature and

to decrease the risks of forest fires, they give reaction and explanation that


50

promote damages to the country. In other words, Indonesian government is

involved by discouraging no-deforestation.

The next predicate that shows the indirect cause of forest fires from

Indonesian government is “encourage” in Article 2. As an agent, Indonesian

government is the instigator of the event “encourage”. The kind of encouragement

is not described in detail in the article. However, the encouragement is most likely

to contribute to the occurrence of forest fires, which lead to the ruination. Thus,

Indonesian government is involved in the forest fires.

The predicate that shows the involvement of Indonesian government as the

direct cause of forest fires is “issue” in Article 3. The thematic role of this

predicate is agent. Volitionally and willfully, Indonesian government gives

permission to companies to burn the peat, which is a high-risk method to set the

forest on fire. The forest fires supposedly come from burning the peat. Indonesian

government, thus, is involved by increasing the risks of forest fires.

The predicate “profit” in Article 2 shows that Indonesian government is

involved by gaining benefits from the disaster. The involvement does not

contribute to the cause of forest fires, but the profit comes from the forest fires.

Indonesian government has the thematic role agent which shows that Indonesian

government must be aware of the profit they gain. Profiting from something might

be an indication of further involvement. Profit might be for the motivation for the

government to intentionally disregard the risks of forest fires. Collecting the

profit, and even gaining more profit, can lead the government to maintain the

same method which can risk the ruination of nature.


51

Lastly, to elaborate the responsibility of Indonesian government for forest

fires, Article 1 mentions the supports from the United States of America to

Indonesia. Article 1 is the only article that mentions another nation altogether with

reference to Indonesian government. The catastrophe is mentioned in the meeting

of the leaders of Indonesia and the USA. Joko Widodo, the president of Indonesia,

meets Barack Obama, the former president of the USA, in Washington. However,

both arguments of the predicate “meet”, Widodo and Obama, have the thematic

role agent. The meeting is volitional rather than accidental or incidental. The

meeting seems to be well-arranged as both are political leaders of the two nations.

Leaders of nation are not just ordinary citizens. They also represent the nation,

especially when they appear in international meeting. The meeting of the two

nation leaders exhibits that Indonesia has diplomatic relationship with the USA.

The diplomatic relationship normally is employed to gain supports from other

nations to work their national agenda.

During the meeting, Widodo’s policy action is welcomed by Obama. The

argument “President Widodo’s recent policy actions to combat and prevent forest

fires” is the goal of the welcoming, which has a sense of approval. Obama is the

source of the approval. In relation to the forest fires, the USA gives supports in

the efforts to solve and end the burning. The support from the USA is significant

as it is a powerful nation in international stage. Moreover, Obama is also known

for his works for the environmental concerns. The support from the USA

conveyed in the article is to show how serious the forest fires are. It is also to keep

an eye open for how the nations, the USA and Indonesia, work on this issue.


52

2. Warning

Another ideology found in the articles is a warning that Indonesian

government will overlook the problem of forest fires. The warning comes from

thematic roles which are entailed to events of the Indonesian genocide in 1960s.

The articles take notice of what Indonesian government has done so far to deal

with the human rights abuses in 1960s. Indonesian government, as the responsible

entity, has gotten away from the responsibility to prosecute the human right

abuser. The notice on a case from the past used to warn that Indonesian

government might get away again from responsibility, which is now upon the

forest fires.

In Article 1, there are three predicates that show warning, which are

“commit”, “hesitate”, and “commit”. In the sentence, Indonesian government is

not expressed. The argument is the noun phrase “those who commit a” which can

refer to anyone. However, it is fair to conclude that this sentence is aimed to

address Indonesian government. In previous paragraphs, the violation on human

rights in Indonesia is pointed out. The sentence talks about the possibility of

Indonesian government to carry out mistakes on the forest fires as in the case of

the genocide in 1960s and political murder in West Papua. The thematic role from

the three predicates is agent. The agency reinforces the responsibility of

Indonesian government for the problems in the country. In this article, it is meant

to warning of the repetitious crimes.

Referring to Article 1, the argument “Suharto’s terror” represents the

ideology of warning. “Suharto’s terror” has the thematic role source of the murder


53

of a million people which is known as genocide in 1960s. Indonesian government

since then has been considered to be involved in the genocide. The current

government has been demanded to prosecute the criminals and apologize for the

crimes against humanity.

Furthermore, Article 2 has eleven predicates which reveal the ideology of

warning. All of the predicates explain how Indonesian government was involved

with the 1960s genocide and how Indonesian government handles the 1960s

genocide case in the present time. The predicates are displayed as follows.

1. organize

2. exterminate

3. make good

4. punish

5. refuse

6. establish

7. consider

8. convene

9. attend

10. refuse

11. apologize

All predicates are assigned to Indonesian government with thematic role agent.

This shows how Indonesian government as the responsible entity should prosecute

the criminals and also apologize for the wrongdoing. However, Indonesian

government is accounted for refusing doing it. This notice on 1960s genocide is to

remind that Indonesian government might get away from the forest fires, as what

they have done with the human right abuses. The explanation of each predicate is

below.

The first two predicates “organize” and “exterminate” show how Indonesia

government has become involved in the genocide. The argument of the predicates


54

is Indonesian military. As the apparatus of the government, Indonesian military is

accounted as a part of Indonesian government. They are actively involved in the

mass killings by organizing and exterminating who were identified as the enemies

by General Suharto, arguably one of the most powerful political people at that

time.

The predicate “make good” (see 2.a.3) shows that Indonesian government

is expected to be successful on fulfill his campaign promise to punish the

genocide in 1960s. The predicate “punish” appearing in the same sentence with

the predicate “make good” clearly suggests what Indonesian government should

do. It also implies that Indonesian government is the responsible entity to deal

with the matter.

Next predicates, which are “refuse” and “establish” (see 2.a.4), show

another responsibility that Indonesian government should take but is declined.

Both predicates appear in the same sentence and have Indonesian government as

the agent. It can be inferred that Indonesian government is responsible to improve

the injustice from the 1960s genocide but refused the responsibility. The last

predicate of the sentence is “consider” (see 2.a.5), which also implies the

responsibility not taken by Indonesian government. In order to punish the human

right abuses justly, Indonesian government need to proceed against the

perpetrators. However, Indonesian government is least likely to consider the

proceeding if the basic task, establishing a truth commission, is not even done yet.

The predicate “convene” (see 2.a.7) and “attend” (see 2.a.8), although

appearing in different sentences, refers the same symposium which examines the


55

killings. Indonesian government has the thematic role agent in both predicate. It

shows that Indonesian government participates volitionally and willfully in

improving the injustice of the genocide. The improvements, as well as the

reluctance which Indonesian government shows, regarding to the case of the

genocide in 1960s receive attention from the media.

The predicate “refuse” and “apologize” appear in the same sentence (see

2.a.9) and the Indonesian government has the thematic role agent. The main verb

“refuse” is written in the past tense form, which shows that what the government

used to do, and is repeated for the second time in the Article 2. It is for

emphasizing on what happens in the past, i.e. Indonesian government refused to

apologize. It implies the responsibility of Indonesian government to make the

apology regarding to the human right abuses in the 1960s.

Besides source and agency, the thematic role goal (see 2.c.1) also

illustrates the notice on the 1960s genocide. The thematic role goal is meant for

the “mounting public pressure” in Article 2. The public gives force that is

increasing to the government to break the silence and stop the lawlessness. From

this starting point, people violating the rules regarding to nature might finally be

convicted.


56

CHAPTER V

CONCLUSION AND SUGGESTION

This chapter is divided into two parts. They are conclusion and suggestions.

Conclusion reports the summary of this study’s data findings and analysis.

Suggestion covers the further researches that can be developed from the related

topic.

A. Conclusion

In all The Guardian’s opinion articles on forest fires in Indonesia,

Indonesian government is discussed several times. There are twenty one clauses

that contain the argument Indonesian government. Some clauses have more than

one predicate for one argument of Indonesian government. There are thirty-seven

thematic roles assigned to Indonesian government. They are agent, author, patient,

source, and goal.

Thematic roles are analyzed to see if the predicate of the argument

signifies a volitional act, which is equivalent to thematic role agent, or an inactive

cause, which is equivalent to thematic role author, or a causative act, which is

equivalent to thematic role patient. The semantic relation between the argument

Indonesian government and other arguments is observed to see if the thematic role

is source or goal. Thematic role agent is the most assigned thematic role for

Indonesian government, while other thematic roles do not share distribution as

high as thematic role agent. The thematic role agent holds 79% in Article 1, 88%


57

in Article 2, and 100% in Article 3. Thematic role author, source and goal hold

7% each in Article 1, while thematic role patient and goal holds 6% each in

Article 2. Thematic roles are analyzed to see if the predicate of the argument

signifies a volitional act, which is equivalent to thematic role agent, or a causative

act, which is equivalent to thematic role patient. The semantic relation between

the argument Indonesian government and other arguments is observed to see if the

thematic role is source or goal. The finding on the thematic roles reveals that

frequently Indonesian government is an active instigator of the events described in

the opinion articles.

There are two ideologies found in the articles. They are responsibility and

warning. The ideologies are determined from the thematic roles found and the

context of the topic. Discourse analysis is applied to find the relation between the

texts and the context as well to reveal the ideologies.

The ideology of responsibility is the strongest ideology. It is captured in

the majority of thematic roles. The thematic roles agent, patient, and goal

contribute in revealing that Indonesian government is a responsible entity to the

forest fires. The ideology of responsibility can be found in all of three opinion

articles.

The ideology of warning is captured mostly in Article 2 by means of

thematic roles agent and goal, and in Article 1 by thematic role source and agent.

The agency of Indonesian government in the genocide in 1960s is to suggest that

Indonesian government might ignore the violations causing the forest fires. Article

3, however, does not mention the genocide in the 1960s at all. The finding on two


58

ideologies reveals that the major political ideology is democratic government

where the government holds responsibilities for the country.

B. Suggestion

The writer of this study suggests exploring this study deeper. Other

approaches can be applied. There are two suggestions for the further studies

related to this topic. The first suggestion proposes researches to analyze other kind

of argument to understand their relation to the forest fires. The opinion articles

mention several entities beside Indonesian government. Further researches can

reveal the importance in other entities’ involvement in the massive forest fires,

which destroyed the environment and put the Earth in great danger. The second

suggestion proposes researches to employ other linguistic device beside thematic

roles or semantic approach. For example, adjectives and adverbs describing the

forest fires or other entities can reveal the ideologies of the opinion articles from

different aspects.


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APPENDICES

Appendix 1

Article 1 (George Monbiot’s Indonesia is burning. So why is the world looking

away?)

A great tract of Earth is on fire and threatened species are being driven

out of their habitats. This is a crime against humanity and nature

I’ve often wondered how the media would respond when eco-apocalypse

struck. I pictured the news programmes producing brief, sensational reports, while

failing to explain why it was happening or how it might be stopped. Then they

would ask their financial correspondents how the disaster affected share prices,

before turning to the sport. As you can probably tell, I don’t have an ocean of faith

in the industry for which I work. What I did not expect was that they would ignore

it.

A great tract of Earth is on fire. It looks as you might imagine hell to be.

The air has turned ochre: visibility in some cities has been reduced to 30 metres.

Children are being prepared for evacuation in warships; already some

have choked to death. Species are going up in smoke at an untold rate. It is almost

certainly the greatest environmental disaster of the 21st century – so far.

And the media? It’s talking about the dress the Duchess of Cambridge wore to the

James Bond premiere, Donald Trump’s idiocy du jour and who got eliminated


https://www.theguardian.com/uk/environment

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/indonesia-readies-shelter-ships-as-haze-last-resort-after-evacuateus-hits-twitter/

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/09/children-are-dying-from-respiratory-ailments-as-haze-blankets-sumatra/

62

from the Halloween episode of Dancing with the Stars. The great debate of the

week, dominating the news across much of the world? Sausages: are they really so

bad for your health?

What I’m discussing is a barbecue on a different scale. Fire is

raging across the 5,000km length of Indonesia. It is surely, on any objective

assessment, more important than anything else taking place today. And it

shouldn’t require a columnist, writing in the middle of a newspaper, to say so. It

should be on everyone’s front page. It is hard to convey the scale of this inferno,

but here’s a comparison that might help: it is currently producing more carbon

dioxide than the US economy. And in three weeks the fires have released more

CO2 than the annual emissions of Germany.

But that doesn’t really capture it. This catastrophe cannot be measured

only in parts per million. The fires are destroying treasures as precious and

irreplaceable as the archaeological remains being levelled by Isis. Orangutans,

clouded leopards, sun bears, gibbons, the Sumatran rhinoceros and Sumatran

tiger, these are among the threatened species being driven from much of their

range by the flames. But there are thousands, perhaps millions, more.

One of the burning provinces is West Papua, a nation that has been illegally

occupied by Indonesia since 1963. I spent six months there when I was 24,

investigating some of the factors that have led to this disaster. At the time it was a

wonderland, rich with endemic species in every swamp and valley. Who knows

how many of those have vanished in the past few weeks? This week I have pored

and wept over photos of places I loved that have now been reduced to ash.


https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/26/indonesias-fires-crime-against-humanity-hundreds-of-thousands-suffer

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/26/indonesias-fires-crime-against-humanity-hundreds-of-thousands-suffer

http://blog.globalforestwatch.org/2015/10/indonesias-fire-outbreaks-producing-more-daily-emissions-than-entire-u-s-economy/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/10/15/how-indonesias-staggering-fires-are-making-global-warming-worse/

http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/energy-environment/wp/2015/10/15/how-indonesias-staggering-fires-are-making-global-warming-worse/

https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2015/oct/28/isis-palmyra-temple-baalshamin-three-captives-attack-violence-art-humanity

https://www.theguardian.com/world/west-papua

http://www.monbiot.com/books/poisoned-arrows/

63

Nor do the greenhouse gas emissions capture the impact on the people of

these lands. After the last great conflagration, in 1997, there was a missing cohort

in Indonesia of 15,000 children under the age of three, attributed to air pollution.

This, it seems, is worse. The surgical masks being distributed across the nation

will do almost nothing to protect those living in a sunless smog. Members of

parliament in Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) have had to wear face masks

during debates. The chamber is so foggy that they must have difficulty

recognising one another.

It’s not just the trees that are burning. It is the land itself. Much of the

forest sits on great domes of peat. When the fires penetrate the earth, they

smoulder for weeks, sometimes months, releasing clouds of methane, carbon

monoxide, ozone and exotic gases such as ammonium cyanide. The plumes

extend for hundreds of miles, causing diplomatic conflicts with neighbouring

countries.

Why is this happening? Indonesia’s forests have been fragmented for

decades by timber and farming companies. Canals have been cut through the peat

to drain and dry it. Plantation companies move in to destroy what remains of the

forest to plant monocultures of pulpwood, timber and palm oil. The easiest way to

clear the land is to torch it. Every year, this causes disasters. But in an extreme El

Niño year like this one, we have a perfect formula for environmental catastrophe.

The president, Joko Widodo, is – or wants to be – a democrat. But he presides

over a nation in which fascism and corruption flourish. As Joshua Oppenheimer’s

documentary The Act of Killing shows, leaders of the death squads that helped


http://www.nber.org/papers/w14011

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/kalimantan-politicians-wear-facemasks-inside-parliament-as-palangkaraya-suffers-in-silence/

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/singapore-takes-legal-action-against-5-indonesian-companies-over-haze/

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/malaysia-pm-turns-up-heat-on-indonesia-as-australian-firm-faces-fires-probe/

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/malaysia-pm-turns-up-heat-on-indonesia-as-australian-firm-faces-fires-probe/

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/29/indonesia-fires-widodo-haze-zone-country-becomes-world-top-polluter

https://www.theguardian.com/film/the-act-of-killing

64

murder a million people during Suharto’s terror in the 1960s, with the approval of

the west, have since prospered through other forms of organised crime, including

illegal deforestation.

They are supported by a paramilitary organisation with three million

members, called Pancasila Youth. With its orange camo-print uniforms, scarlet

berets, sentimental gatherings and schmaltzy music, it looks like a fascist militia

as imagined by JG Ballard. There has been no truth, no reconciliation; the mass

killers are still treated as heroes and feted on television. In some places, especially

West Papua, the political murders continue.

Those who commit crimes against humanity don’t hesitate to commit

crimes against nature. Though Joko Widodo seems to want to stop the burning,

his reach is limited. His government’s policies are contradictory: among them are

new subsidies for palm oil production that make further burning almost inevitable.

Some plantation companies, prompted by their customers, have promised to stop

destroying the rainforest. Government officials have responded angrily, arguing

that such restraint impedes the country’s development. That smoke blotting out

the nation, which has already cost it some $30bn? That, apparently, is

development.

Our leverage is weak, but there are some things we can do. Some

companies using palm oil have made visible efforts to reform their supply chains;

but others seem to move more slowly and opaquely. Starbucks, PepsiCo, Kraft

Heinz and Unilever are examples. Don’t buy their products until you see results.


https://www.hrw.org/news/2014/03/03/indonesias-act-denial

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/09/indonesian-officials-resist-movement-to-end-deforestation-for-palm-oil/

http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/opinion/erik-meijaard-indonesias-fire-crisis-biggest-environmental-crime-21st-century/

https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/rainforestactionnetwork/pages/5884/attachments/original/1435772500/RAN_TESTING_COMMITMENTS_2015_FINAL.pdf?1435772500

https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/aug/25/starbucks-palm-oil-campaign-2015-sumofus-consumers-deforestation-commitments

http://www.ran.org/sf20scorecard

65

On Monday, Widodo was in Washington, meeting Barack Obama. Obama, the

official communiqué recorded, “welcomed President Widodo’s recent policy

actions to combat and prevent forest fires”. The eco-apocalypse taking place as

they conferred, which makes a mockery of these commitments, wasn’t mentioned.

Governments ignore issues when the media ignores them. And the media ignores

them because … well, there’s a question with a thousand answers, many of which

involve power. But one reason is the complete failure of perspective in a de-

skilled industry dominated by corporate press releases, photo ops and fashion

shoots, where everyone seems to be waiting for everyone else to take a lead. The

media makes a collective non-decision to treat this catastrophe as a non-issue, and

we all carry on as if it’s not happening.

At the climate summit in Paris in December the media, trapped within the

intergovernmental bubble of abstract diplomacy and manufactured drama, will

cover the negotiations almost without reference to what is happening elsewhere.

The talks will be removed to a realm with which we have no moral contact. And,

when the circus moves on, the silence will resume. Is there any other industry that

serves its customers so badly?



66

Appendix 2

Article 2 (Joshua Oppenheimer’s Why today’s global warming has roots in

Indonesia’s genocidal past)

The mass killings in 1965 live on in global emissions from forced forest

fires – and through human rights abuses in the palm oil fields

There has been tremendous concern over the ways climate change will

affect human rights, but little attention to how human rights abuse affects our

global climate.

Fifty years ago, Indonesia went through a genocide. The massacres may be

relatively unknown, but in a terrible way the destruction continues, and threatens

us all. In 1965, the Indonesian army organised paramilitary death squads and

exterminated who had hastily been identified as enemies of General Suharto’s

new military dictatorship. Today, the killers and their protégés are comfortable

establishment figures whose impunity, political power and capacity for

intimidation endure.

Over this past year the lawlessness that began with the genocide arrived in

all our lives. Some 130,000 forest fires in Indonesia darkened the skies over much

of south-east Asia last summer and autumn, destroying more than 8,100 square

miles of virgin rainforest – an area larger than New Jersey or Wales. The fires

released more than 1.75 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, equal

to the total annual emissions of Japan. While last year’s fires were the worst on


http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/opinion/suhartos-purge-indonesias-silence.html?ref=opinion


https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2015/dec/01/indonesia-forest-fires-how-the-years-worst-environmental-disaster-unfolded-interactive

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2015/dec/01/indonesia-forest-fires-how-the-years-worst-environmental-disaster-unfolded-interactive

http://qz.com/528160/indonesias-palm-oil-fires-are-emitting-more-greenhouse-gases-every-day-than-the-entire-us/

67

record, fires on a similar scale have burned annually for nearly 20 years, making a

mockery of our efforts to curb global warming.

The fires are started by Indonesian and international companies to burn

rainforest and replace it with oil palm plantations. Palm oil is the world’s most

commonly used plant-based oil, and the market for it has exploded along with the

global middle class. Setting fires is the cheapest way to clear land for new oil

palm plantations.

Although Indonesia has strict laws aimed at keeping the fires in check, the

laws exist on paper only. The companies get away with burning the forest because

they work in partnership with the military – an institution that, ever since the

genocide, has committed human rights violations with alarming regularity. These

recurring atrocities keep the military feared – and above the law. Since 1965,

multinational companies have collaborated with the armed forces to seize land and

exploit a cheap labour force too afraid to demand safe working conditions or a fair

wage. (Land is also seized for other lucrative, often illegal uses, mainly timber

concessions and mines, which are similarly destructive of the environment.)

And thus the military and its corporate partners get away with appalling

corruption and unspeakable ecological crimes. For 50 years the capacity to

terrorise has determined the distribution of wealth and power.

While palm oil producers and their military partners profit from the fires,

the people of Indonesia pay an incalculable price. Last year’s inferno spread an

unremitting, sickening haze over 43 million people. Half a million sought care for

respiratory illnesses, while an average of 110,000 south-east Asians die every year


https://www.theguardian.com/environment/palm-oil

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/oct/30/indonesia-fires-disaster-21st-century-world-media

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/oct/30/indonesia-fires-disaster-21st-century-world-media



http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/features/201512_smoke/

http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/stop-the-haze/

68

as a result of the conflagration. And the never-ending rows of oil palm spread

brutally exploitative labour conditions – including child labour and poisoning by

lethal herbicides and pesticides.

Meanwhile, the deforestation has critically endangered a third

of Indonesia’s mammals. And, according to Pep Canadell, director of the Global

Carbon Project, the fires were “the global tipping point” that will push the world

beyond 2C of warming, and squarely into the acknowledged danger zone for the

planet’s climate.

This is both the world’s worst ecological disaster and a human rights

catastrophe – and we are all implicated. We benefit from this rule of fear and the

destruction of the forests by consuming many of Indonesia’s exports. Palm oil is

used in many beauty products, snacks and desserts from companies like

Starbucks, PepsiCo, McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza, Unilever, and countless others.

While a few companies have started to make meaningful strides towards

eliminating conflict palm oil from their products, most remain recalcitrant – to the

detriment of Indonesians and our global ecosystem.

The fires and the exploitation must be stopped, yet the institutions meant

to hold corporations and the military accountable are deliberately kept weak.

Those who ought to police the country – the courts, civil servants and elected

officials – are often the very ones who encourage, and profit from, its ruination.

Even President Joko Widodo, who was elected for his reformist

credentials, has been ineffective at reining in the military and their corporate

partners. Nor has he yet made good on his campaign promise to punish human


http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/interrogation/2015/07/joshua_oppenheimer_interview_the_director_of_the_look_of_silence_and_the.html

https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2016/apr/02/greenpeace-palm-oil-logging-indonesia-overlapping-land-claims-greenpeace-forest-fires

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-06/indonesian-fires-forget-the-orangutans2c-is-this-a-tipping/6916872

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-11-06/indonesian-fires-forget-the-orangutans2c-is-this-a-tipping/6916872

http://www.dw.com/en/indonesias-forest-fires-an-environmental-disaster-of-global-proportions/a-18828623


69

rights abuses, including the 1965 genocide. He has refused to establish a truth

commission, let alone consider proceedings against perpetrators. That means

impunity is still the norm, and as if to prove the point, the Indonesian government

recently announced that man-made fires in the rainforests have begun again – and

burn today.

Still, there have been some hints of change. The release of my films The

Act of Killing (2013) and The Look of Silence (2015) in Indonesia has stimulated

a national discussion about the genocide and the consequences of impunity.

According to Indonesian cultural commentator Ayu Ratih, the thousands of

screenings across the country have been, for the younger generation, a rite of

passage, “an initiation to adulthood which makes them feel more mature, socially

and politically”.

This younger generation will no longer accept silence and inaction, and

recently we have seen mounting public pressure on the government. Just this

month Indonesian officials convened, for the first time ever, a symposium to

examine the killings. Members of President Widodo’s cabinet, Indonesia’s

attorney general, police chief, and justice minister attended the conference – as

did NGO activists, former military leaders, survivors and families of those killed.

While it was an unprecedented gathering, it is still only a small step toward

ending the lawlessness that began in 1965. The government refused to apologise,

and no steps were taken toward true accountability.

Indonesia’s movement against impunity has a long struggle ahead. Our

survival as a species may depend on its success.




https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/mar/06/the-act-of-killing-prize-guardian-film-awards

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2014/mar/06/the-act-of-killing-prize-guardian-film-awards

https://www.theguardian.com/film/video/2015/jun/12/the-look-of-silence-video-review

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/11/13/world/asia/indonesia-the-look-of-silence/

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/sep/30/it-is-50-years-since-the-indonesian-genocide-of-1965-but-we-cannot-look-away



http://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/18/world/asia/after-long-silence-indonesia-allows-talk-of-anti-communist-atrocities.html?_r=0

http://www.smh.com.au/world/indonesia-rules-out-apology-to-victims-at-stateendorsed-talks-on-1965-massacres-20160418-go96fq.html

70

Appendix 3

Article 3 (Lindsey Allen’s Is Indonesia's fire crisis connected to the palm oil in

our snack food?)

The widespread burning of tropical rainforests and peatlands to develop

palm oil plantations is one of the largest sources of carbon pollution today

Traveling from California to Indonesia’s Sumatra island recently was a

startling journey between two lands engulfed in flames. Although a world away

from each other, these two historic fire events are connected through the cause

and effect of climate change and a broken system of international commodity

production that will take all of us at both ends of the supply chain to fix. This will

necessitate holding Western companies accountable for the consequences of their

global operations.

The conflagrations raging out of control across Sumatra and Borneo are a

global scale environmental and human rights emergency, but the players involved,

from the Indonesian government, commodity producers and traders, to Western

snack food companies, have so far largely failed to connect the dots to strike at the

core of the problem.

If you have not flown over the region recently, it is truly difficult to grasp

the immense scale and extreme implications of this tragic situation. Malaysia has

begun evacuating citizens from Indonesia because the risks of prolonged exposure

are so severe. Flights are cancelled daily as airports across the region shut down

and in Singapore schools are being closed because the air quality is so bad it is a


http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/indonesia-under-pressure-to-control-forest-fires-cloaking-the-country-and-its-neighbours-in-smoke-a6678546.html

http://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysia-shuts-schools-amid-unhealthy-haze

71

serious threat to human health. People are literally dying because they cannot

breathe.

But the smoke crisis is not just a regional issue. The widespread burning of

tropical rainforests and peatlands to develop pulpwood and palm oil plantations is

one of the largest sources of carbon pollution occurring in the world today. It is

estimated that the fires are producing more carbon pollution than the entire daily

emissions of the United States.

According to an analysis of World Resources Institute data between the 5

and 13 of September, which is when we were in Indonesia, of the hundreds of

fires burning in Sumatra, 37% were at that point on pulpwood concessions, most

of which supply the logging giant Asia Pulp and Paper (APP). Most of the rest

originate in or near palm oil plantations, many of which are connected through the

big palm oil traders that purchase from them to the supply chains of international

food companies, including those dubbed the Snack Food 20.

Many of these fires are a direct result of the industrial manipulation of the

landscape for plantation development. Palm oil giants are accused of displacing

local communities from their land and livelihood, opening up massive peat

swamps with road building and forest clearance and installing extensive networks

of canals. The lowering of the water table by peat canals dries out the land and

allows fires to burn in areas where they would never naturally occur.

Companies like APP are quick to accuse small farmers and villagers of

lighting many of the fires. Even if that is true, the displacement of communities

and the drainage of peatlands by large scale plantation companies is ultimately


http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/100936/putting-out-forest-fires-crucial-to-saving-lives

http://www.wri.org/blog/2015/10/indonesia%E2%80%99s-fire-outbreaks-producing-more-daily-emissions-entire-us-economy

http://www.wri.org/blog/2015/10/indonesia%E2%80%99s-fire-outbreaks-producing-more-daily-emissions-entire-us-economy

http://fires.globalforestwatch.org/app/js/views/report/report.html#aoitype=ISLAND&dates=fYear-2015%21fMonth-9%21fDay-5%21tYear-2015%21tMonth-9%21tDay-13&aois=Sumatra

http://news.mongabay.com/2015/10/companies-struggle-to-fight-fires-in-indonesia/

http://www.forestpeoples.org/topics/pulp-paper/publication/2010/social-conflict-and-environmental-disaster-report-asia-pulp-and-p

http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/rainforestactionnetwork/legacy_url/823/app_hidden_emissions.pdf?1402698389

http://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/rainforestactionnetwork/legacy_url/823/app_hidden_emissions.pdf?1402698389

http://www.theicct.org/review-peat-surface-greenhouse-gas-emissions-oil-palm-plantations-southeast-asia

http://www.theicct.org/review-peat-surface-greenhouse-gas-emissions-oil-palm-plantations-southeast-asia

http://www.researchgate.net/publication/227672237_Runaway_fires_smoke-haze_pollution_and_unnatural_disasters_in_Indonesia

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/hard-to-prevent-fires-due/2164118.html

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/hard-to-prevent-fires-due/2164118.html

72

responsible for the allowing these fires to take place. Communities whose forest-

dependent subsistence livelihoods have been disrupted by plantation development

often turn to clearing what land they can find, using the only cost-effective

method available to them: fire.

Solving this crisis is not about fighting fires. Extinguishing thousands of

peat blazes across thousands of square miles of remote tropical landscape is

hugely expensive and ultimately unfeasible. The only real solution is to prevent

them from occurring in the first place.

The first and most basic change needed is a total halt to plantation

development on peatlands and remaining natural forests. Peat swamp soil is the

result of thousands of years of accumulation of organic material. Left alone, it is

one of the most effective landscapes on earth for sequestering carbon. But when

drained and ignited, it releases a carbon bomb into the atmosphere.

This will require the Indonesian government to stop issuing permits on

peat and for big brands to stop buying from bad actors that refuse to change.

The Indonesian government must aggressively prosecute offending

companies. Permits for plantation development are granted at a screaming deal to

companies that make large profits from the privilege. Using fire to clear forests is

already illegal under Indonesian law, but enforcement has been so lax that no one

fears punishment. This means revoking permits, arresting executives and levying

serious fines.

It is crucial for all major brands that source palm oil from Indonesia -

especially laggards like PepsiCo and Kraft Heinz that have yet to adopt truly


http://www.wetlands.org/OurWork/ClimateMitigation/tabid/837/Default.aspx

http://www.wetlands.org/Whatarewetlands/Peatlands/Carbonemissionsfrompeatlands/tabid/2738/Default.aspx


73

responsible palm oil commitments - to finally break the link between their

products and this destruction by eliminating third party suppliers that refuse to

change.

It is clear the market and investors are the main forces these companies

answer to and recent campaign successes have shown the power of consumer

outcry to bring about corporate commitments on these issues. Consumers in the

West bear a responsibility to exercise their influence to demand these companies

pass strong policies and implement them fully.

From the wildfires in California to rising sea levels in New York, we stand

to lose as much here from out of control climate change as those suffocating right

now in Southeast Asia. Linked through global economics and a shared

atmosphere, we must work together to do the hard work necessary to stop the

downward spiral these fires represent.


74

Appendix 4

Thematic Roles in Article 1

No Code Sentence or clause Thematic

role Ideology

1 1.a.1 The President, Joko Widodo, is—or

want to be—a democrat. Agent Responsibility

2 1.a.2 But, he presides over a nation in which

fascism and corruption flourish. Agent Responsibility

3 1.c.1

…leaders of the death squads that

helped murder a million people during

Suharto’s terror in the 1960s, with

the approval of the west, have since

prospered through other forms of

organised crime, including illegal

deforestation.

Source Warning

4 1.a.3

Those who commit crimes against

humanity don’t hesitate to commit

crimes against nature.

Agent,

Agent,

Agent

Warning

5 1.a.4 Though Joko Widodo seems to want

to stop the burning

Agent,

Agent Responsibility

6 1.b.1

His government’s policies are

contradictory: among them are new

subsidies for palm oil production that

make further burning almost inevitable

Author Responsibility

7 1.a.5

Government officials have responded

angrily, arguing that such restraint

impedes the country’s development.

Agent,


8 1.a.6 On Monday, Widodo was in

Washington, meeting Barack Obama Agent Responsibility

9 1.d.1

Obama, the official

communiqué recorded, “welcomed

President Widodo’s recent policy

actions to combat and prevent forest

fires”

Goal Responsibility

10 1.a.7 Governments ignore issues… Agent Responsibility




75

Appendix 5


No Code Sentence or clause Thematic

role Ideology

1 2.a.1

In 1965, the Indonesian army organised

paramilitary death squads and

exterminated who had hastily been

identified as enemies of General

Suharto’s new military dictatorship

Agent,

Agent Warning

2 2.a.2

Those who ought to police the country –

the courts, civil servants and elected

officials – are often the very ones who

encourage, and profit from, its ruination

Agent,

Agent,

Agent

Responsibility

3 2.a.3

Nor has he yet made good on his

campaign promise to punish human

rights abuses, including the 1965

genocide

Agent,

Agent Warning

4 2.a.4 He has refused to establish a truth

commission

Agent,

Agent

Warning

5 2.a.5 …let alone consider proceedings against

perpetrators Agent

Warning

6 2.a.6

…the Indonesian government recently

announced that man-made fires in the

rainforests have begun again – and burn

today


7 2.a.7

Just this month Indonesian officials

convened, for the first time ever,

a symposium to examine the killings

Agent Warning

8 2.a.8

Members of President Widodo’s

cabinet, Indonesia’s attorney general,

police chief, and justice minister

attended the conference – as did NGO

activists, former military leaders,

survivors and families of those killed

Agent Warning

9 2.a.9 The government refused to apologise… Agent,

Agent Warning

10 2.b.1 Even President Joko Widodo, who was

elected for his reformist credentials… Patient Responsibility

11 2.c.1 …recently we have seen mounting

public pressure on the government Goal Warning





76

Appendix 6


No Code Sentence/clause Thematic

role Ideology

1 3.a.1

…but the players involved, from the

Indonesian government, commodity

producers and traders, to Western snack

food companies, have so far largely

failed to connect the dots to strike at the

core of the problem

Agent,

Agent,

Agent

Responsibility

2 3.a.2

This will require the Indonesian

government to stop issuing permits on

peat

Agent,


3 3.a.3

The Indonesian government must

aggressively prosecute offending

companies



77

Appendix 7

Ideologies in Predicates with Lexical Meaning

No Ideology Code Predicate Lexical Meaning

1 Responsibility

1.a.1 want have desire to possess or do

something

1.a.2 preside over be in charge of (a situation)

1.a.4 want

have desire to possess or do

something

stop cause to come to an end

1.b.1 make bring about or perform; cause

1.a.5

respond say or do something in reply

or as a reaction

argue

exchange conflicting views in

a heated way; give reasons or

cite evidence in support of an

idea, action, or theory

1.a.6 meet

arrange or happen to come

into the presence or company

of (someone)

1.d.1 welcome be glad to receive or heard of

(something)

1.a.7 ignore disregard intentionally

2.a.2

police control and maintain law and

order in (an area)

encourage

give support, confidence, or

hope to (something); help or

stimulate the development of

(something)

profit benefit, especially financially

2.a.6 announce

make a formal public

declaration about a fact,

occurrence, or intention

2.b.1 be elected

be chosen to hold a position,

especially public office, by

voting

3.a.1

fail

be unsuccessful in an

undertaking; be unable to

meet the standard set by

connect the dots find the big picture in a mass

of data


78

strike hit or kick

3.a.2

stop cause to come to an end

issue supply or distribute for use or

sale

3.a.3 prosecute

institute or conduct legal

proceedings against

(something)

2 Warning

1.a.3

commit

perpetrate or carry out (a

mistake, crime, or immoral

act)

hesitate pause in indecision

commit

perpetrate or carry out (a

mistake, crime, or immoral

act)

2.a.1 organize arrange systematically

exterminate destroy completely; eradicate

2.a.3

make good be successful

punish inflict a penalty on as

retribution for an offence

2.a.4

refuse indicate unwillingness to do

something

establish set up on a firm or permanent

basis; initiate or bring about

2.a.5 consider think carefully about

2.a.7 convene come or bring together for a

meeting

2.a.8 attend be preset at

2.a.9

refuse indicate unwillingness to do

something

apologize express regret for something

that one has done wrong


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IDEOLOGIES OF THE GUARDIAN’S OPINION ARTICLES ON …ideologi terhadap peran pemerintah Indonesia...

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