Indonesian law targeting ‘disturbing’ online posts harms free speech, data privacy: critics
- Indonesian authorities can now ask digital platforms to remove content deemed ‘disturbing and causing public disorder’ within 24 hours
- Rights advocates fear further limits on data privacy, freedom of speech as companies comply with regulations to gain foothold in Indonesia
A law allowing the Indonesian government to censor “problematic” online content has raised further concerns over freedom of speech in Indonesia, the world’s third-largest democracy, as global tech giants accede to authorities’ requests to avoid a total ban on their services.
Under the law, Indonesian authorities can request digital platforms to take down content that it deems “disturbing and causing public disorder” within 24 hours from receiving an order, or four hours in urgent cases.
The law also granted authorities the power to request access to the digital platforms’ system or users’ personal data for criminal investigations, without a court warrant. Failure to comply with these requests will result in a letter of reprimand, fine, or access blockage to the company’s services.
Public backlash over the law has been swift and sharp, particularly from civil organisations and internet users. An online petition by Jakarta-based digital rights advocacy group Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFENet) has received over 11,000 signatures calling for the rejection of the regulation due to its “rubbery articles” that threaten freedom of speech and data privacy.
Nenden Arum, head of freedom of expression division at SAFENet, said: “The ministerial regulation can violate our freedom of expression because the article on content censorship is very repressive. This can be used to silence critics [of the government] as we don’t know what the authorities’ definition of disturbing content is.”
Responding to This Week in Asia, Semuel Abrijani Pangerapan, the ministry’s director general for informatics applications, said the ministry would only take down digital content deemed “very disturbing and very unsettling”.