The “Londo Ireng” Metaphor and the Delegitimisation of Criticism in Political Communication: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Prabowo Subianto's Speech at the 28th PKB Anniversary

This study aims to analyse the construction, rhetorical functions, and ideological implications of the ”Londo Ireng” metaphor in President Prabowo Subianto’s political speech at the 28th PKB Harlah Celebration. The study employs a qualitative approach within a critical paradigm, integrating Norman Fairclough’s and Teun A. van Dijk’s models of Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) with Jonathan Charteris-Black's Critical Metaphor Analysis (CMA). Primary data were derived from an audiovisually verified transcript of the speech, whilst secondary data comprised supporting documents and media coverage for triangulation. The findings reveal that the “Londo Ireng” metaphor is constructed through three discursive moves: historicisation (activating colonial historical trauma), re-actualisation (transferring the discourse of betrayal onto contemporary actors through the 'changing clothes’ metaphor), and rhetorical interrogation (casting suspicion on funding motives). The conceptual projection from the source domain of colonialism onto the target domain of critical actors (journalists, analysts, and NGOs) systematically delegitimises the public watchdog function by framing criticism as a form of disloyalty or subservience to foreign interests. The study concludes that the deployment of a historically traumatic, racially nuanced metaphor operates as a form of symbolic power that narrows the space for critical participation in a democracy. This research contributes to the development of political communication studies and critical discourse analysis concerning colonial-memory-based strategies of delegitimisation.