Jakarta. The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), together with the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), launched a media training program on Monday aimed at improving how newsrooms report on femicide cases, amid concern that local media outlets often sensationalize such crimes to drive clicks.
Speaking at the workshop in Jakarta, Komnas Perempuan Commissioner Chatarina Pancer Istiyani said many news reports still lack a victim-centered approach and instead rely on dramatic details that can retraumatize families or perpetuate harmful stereotypes. "What we ask from the media is to adopt a stronger perspective toward victims," Chatarina told reporters at the Novotel Hotel in Cikini.
She cited recurring examples where victims are labeled with stigmatizing terms -- such as "debt collector," "sex worker," or "widow" -- even when such descriptions are irrelevant to the case. These choices, she said, strip victims of dignity and reinforce societal bias. Chatarina also warned that overly graphic descriptions of injuries or the circumstances of death risk inspiring imitation among readers.
"We urge reporters to avoid details that shape public thinking in the wrong direction, away from prevention and away from a victim-centered approach," she said. "Such framing can contribute to victim-blaming."
The issue has gained urgency in Indonesia, where femicide cases are increasingly discussed in public forums, but news coverage often focuses on sensational angles. The trend is driven partly by competition for digital traffic, with dramatic headlines and explicit descriptions attracting higher engagement but overshadowing deeper issues such as gender inequality and patriarchal norms.
AJI's Sexual Violence Task Force representative, Ira Rachmawati, said the training forms part of the global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence. She said that femicide is not an isolated act but a crime rooted in wider social and cultural patterns. "A woman is killed, and the story ends there. But behind it are layers and systems that allow these killings to happen," she said. "Femicide occurs repeatedly, yet media narratives often rely on the perpetrator's viewpoint, most of whom are men."
Ira added that editorial rooms must adopt gender-sensitive practices to avoid symbolically "killing or violating victims again" through harmful reporting. "We hope newsrooms become more respectful toward victims," she said, "as a form of honoring those who can no longer speak for themselves."