A global rights group has once again branded civic space in Indonesia as "obstructed" due to widespread state intimidation, legal manipulation, and violent crackdowns on dissent in the country.
Dozens of activists have been attacked, intimidated, or arrested during President Prabowo Subianto's nine-month administration, Civicus Monitor said in a July 30 statement,
"Speaking out is becoming a dangerous act in Indonesia's tightening environment," said Josef Benedict, a Civicus Monitor Asia researcher.
"Anyone who criticizes the government is being forced into silence through fear, violence, and intimidation," Benedict said.
Civicus Monitor said Indonesia's current rating indicates serious challenges to the freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, and association within the country.
The rights group said Indonesian authorities have crushed protests with violence, harassed human rights groups and journalists, and introduced restrictive legal revisions.
More than 100 human rights defenders have faced arrest, criminalization, intimidation, or physical attacks in the first half of 2025, Civicus said, citing civil society groups.
"This includes land and environmental activists, student organizers, academics, labor advocates, and anti-corruption campaigners," Civicus said, adding that the crackdown is "particularly evident at protests."
Police and military units "violently dispersed" public demonstrations opposing military law revisions in March, Civicus said.
The revisions to the Indonesian National Armed Forces Law "dramatically expanded military influence over civilian life and weakened oversight," the group said.
Security forces assaulted several journalists covering the protests and forced them to erase footage of police violations, Civicus added.
The changes enable officials to fill more civilian posts with military personnel, including in the justice system and state-owned companies, according to Human Rights Watch.
During a peaceful protest on May 1 – International Labor Day – Indonesian police arrested 14 people, including paramedics, and physically assaulted 13 of them, resulting in serious injuries.
"No one was held accountable. Security forces also deployed tear gas and water cannons on demonstrators without provocation," Civicus said.
In April, student-led demonstrations in the Papua region were met with tear gas, arrests, and assaults.
Police officials violently shut down a peaceful protest at Cenderawasih University in May over rising tuition fees, Civicus reported.
Nadine Sherani, a member of the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS), a leading human rights organization, said that Indonesia's civic space being classified as "obstructed" reflected the situation in the country, as highlighted by rights groups.
It "reflects warnings civil society groups in Indonesia have been flagging on dwindling civic freedoms since Prabowo took office," Sherani said.
"The international community must call out these blatant violations, demand progress on civic freedoms, and stand in solidarity with civil society," Sherani added.
Civicus also referred to an incident where Francisca Christy Rosana, a staffer working on the political desk of Indonesian news magazine Tempo, received a severed pig's head from an unknown sender as a warning.
Roasana's identity was leaked, and her relatives received online harassment and threats, Civicus said.
Civicus condemned legislative proposals for the Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP) and the National Police Law, and the government's wiretapping agreement with four major telecommunications operators in June.
These actions increase the risk of mass surveillance and arbitrary data collection, the rights group said.
"The pace and secrecy of these new repressive revisions show that Indonesia's government is sidestepping democratic processes," Benedict said while adding that "these legal changes are designed to consolidate power, not safeguard citizens."
Civicus urged the Prabowo government to stop targeting activists and to hold those responsible for attacks against them accountable.
Source: https://www.ucanews.com/news/rights-group-slams-indonesia-for-crackdown-on-activists-citizens/10980