TikTokker vindicated, Indonesian governor berated in internet row over Lampung provincial infrastructure

Bima Yudho Saputro was reported to police for breaching the information and electronic transactions law after he was critical of Lampung province’s infrastructure

Police said no evidence of a crime was found, and Indonesia’s law ministry berated the Lampung governor who accused Bima of violating internet law

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Bima Yudho Saputro, an Indonesian studying in Australia, was criticised by Lampung governor Arinal Djunaidi, after the student shared a video that drew attention to the lack of development, including stalled infrastructure projects and inadequate education facilities, in his home province. Photo: Bima Yudho Saputro

Published: 3:53pm, 19 Apr 2023

Indonesia’s law and human rights ministry has berated a governor in south Sumatra for criticising a TikTokker who highlighted the region’s shoddy infrastructure under his administration.

Bima Yudho Saputro, an Indonesian student studying in Australia, shared a video earlier this month that drew attention to the lack of development, including stalled infrastructure projects and inadequate education facilities, in his home province of Lampung.

The clip later went viral on social media, infuriating governor Arinal Djunaidi who lashed out at Bima by accusing him of violating the country’s stringent internet law that critics say is designed to stifle free speech.

Bima Yudho Saputro is an Indonesian student in Australia. Photo: Bima Yudho Saputro

Dhahana Putra, the law ministry’s director general of human rights, denounced Arinal’s decision. “Criticism is a key element of the freedom of speech which is guaranteed under the constitution,” he said on Tuesday.

Last week, a lawyer supposedly linked to Arinal reported Bima to police for breaching the information and electronic transactions (ITE) law.

But as uproar over the governor’s action intensified, police in Lampung dropped the case on Tuesday, saying they found no evidence to prove the video “constituted a crime”, the Kompas news website reported.

Activists, politicians and coordinating minister for legal, political, and security affairs Mahfud MD rallied behind Bima before police decided to scrap the investigation against the student.