Human rights violations include repression of freedom of expression and marginalised Indigenous communities

1,262 human rights defenders attacked

‘The new administration must recognise that protest is not a threat to the state, but a fundamental aspect of the rights to freedom of expression’ - Usman Hamid

Ahead of Prabowo Subianto’s inauguration on Sunday 20 October, Amnesty International Indonesia is calling on the new Government to take immediate and effective measures to uphold the human rights of everyone in the country and ensure accountability for human rights violations. 

Under the previous administration, human rights defenders, journalists, and environmental activists faced repression, land was seized from Indigenous communities with little or no compensation or consultation, despite Indonesia’s claims of progress in human rights and the rule of law and stated commitment to address past human rights violations and end impunity, which it failed to do.

The authorities cracked down on peaceful protests, including on development policies threatening Indigenous communities, with numerous reports of security forces using intimidation, harassment, excessive use of force, arbitrary arrests, and beatings.

Usman Hamid, Amnesty International Indonesia’s executive director, said:

“The new administration must recognise that protest is not a threat to the state, but a fundamental aspect of the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly as guaranteed by the constitution and international human rights treaties.

“We call on the new president and Government to evaluate the existing heavy security approach in the region. For the past decade, the intensified military deployment has only resulted in more human rights violations. The new Government must uphold the human rights of everyone in the country and ensure justice and accountability for human rights violations.

“If Indonesia is to move forward, the new president and his administration must immediately prioritise respect for human rights, accountability and the rule of law. This includes reopening or conducting thorough, independent, impartial, transparent and effective investigations into past human rights violations, ensuring access to justice and effective remedies for victims, and strengthening existing legal rules and institutional mechanisms to prevent and redress future violations.

“The new president and Government should prioritise sustainable development that respects Indigenous land rights, access to justice and effective remedies and ensures that affected communities have a meaningful say in decisions that impact their livelihoods. The rights of Indigenous peoples and local communities must be effectively respected and safeguarded in all national development projects.

“A Government that fails to confront its past is doomed to repeat it, and Prabowo’s administration has the obligations to ensure that Indonesia’s history of impunity is not carried into the future.”

From January 2019 to October this year, Amnesty Indonesia recorded attacks against at least 1,262 human rights defenders, including Indigenous people.

Stifling critical voices

Repressive laws include the Electronic Information and Transaction Law, which criminalises human rights defenders and stifles critical voices. Over the years, it transformed into a tool used to suppress criticism of the Government stifling the right to freedom of expression and intimidating those who sought to hold the authorities to account for human rights violations. Human rights defenders were frequently targeted, facing legal charges simply for speaking out against allegations of corruption, environmental destruction, or abuses of power.

From January 2019 to September this year, Amnesty Indonesia recorded at least 521 cases with 554 people charged under this law for defamation and hate speech.

Catalogue of land seizures from Indigenous peoples

Poco Leok residents in Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province have been opposing the Government’s seizure of their land for the construction of a Geothermal Power Plant, part of the Government’s national strategic projects. On 2 October, police arrested and allegedly beat four residents, several protesters, including women, fell after being pushed and one resident fainted after being kicked by an officer.

Similar treatment of protesters occurred in the Mandalika Circuit in Nusa Tenggara Barat ahead of the MotoGP races last September. The authorities banned banners and demonstrations during the event, reflecting the ongoing silencing of critical voices, particularly from local Indigenous communities whose lands were seized for the construction of the Mandalika Circuit and establishment of a Special Economic Zone without fair compensation.

The national strategic projects threaten to displace Indigenous peoples from their ancestral lands, with little to no consultation or compensation.

In Papua, the new Trans-Papua Highway cuts through Indigenous territories without proper consultation. Similarly, in the district of Merauke in South Papua, Indigenous people reject the national strategic food estate project, citing its aggressive implementation without prior agreement or consultation.

In North Sumatra, the Batang Toru Hydroelectric Dam project threatens Indigenous communities living near the Batang Toru forest and its ecosystem, including Tapanuli orangutan habitat.

In Central Java, the Kendeng cement factory was built following minimal consultation and a lack of adequate compensation despite the Indigenous Sedulur Sikep community’s opposition.

In East Kalimantan, the ongoing development of a new capital threatens the rights of Dayak Paser Indigenous communities, whose lands are located within and around the planned construction zone.

In many cases, such projects have also led to environmental degradation, as forests were cleared, ecosystems disrupted, and local communities were left to bear the brunt of the ecological destruction.