Jakarta – Human rights and security sector reform researcher at the Setara Institute for Democracy, Ikhsan Yosarie, says that the arrival of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Headquarters Cyber Unit commander and a number of senior TNI officers at the Metro Jaya Regional Police in Jakarta on Monday September 8 to discuss alleged criminal acts committed by influencer Ferry Irwandi raises serious concerns and concerns about democratic consolidation and security sector reform, especially reform of the TNI.
According to Yosarie, this incident cannot be separated from the context of previous cyber patrols conducted by the TNI Cyber Unit. These patrols uncovered a number of suspected criminal acts, which then formed the basis for consultations with the police.
This situation, he said, shows that the TNI is not merely exceeding its mandate as a state instrument in the defence sector, but is actively taking over the function of detecting and enforcing criminal law, which is the domain of law enforcement agencies.
Although Article 7 paragraph (2) letter b of Law Number 3/2025 on the TNI mandates that one of the TNI's duties in Military Operations Other Than War (OMSP) is related to the cyber sector, namely assisting in cyber defence threat efforts, in the elucidation on the related provisions it is emphasised that the context of the cyber threat referred to is in the defence sector (cyber defence), not related to law enforcement.
"The cyber patrols and consultations related to the discovery of alleged criminal acts carried out by the TNI Cyber Unit not only demonstrate the expansion of the military's role in areas outside of national defence, but also demonstrate the TNI Cyber Unit's failure to understand the scope of the TNI's involvement in the cyber field, which is limited to cyber defence", said Yosarie in a statement on Tuesday September 9 (https://setara-institute.org/patroli-siber-tni-mengarah-pada-represi-digital/).
"Meanwhile, the current dynamics have not yet reached the level of an escalation to a cyber crisis, as stipulated under Article 1, number 4, of Presidential Decree Number 47/2023 on the National Cybersecurity Strategy and Cyber Crisis Management. Consequently, the TNI's involvement in the cyber realm contradicts its mandate and triggers democratic regression through threats to citizens' freedom of opinion and expression", he added.
According to Yosarie, this cyber patrol activity also has the potential to show non-compliance with the basic implementation of OMSP, especially in the cyber sector. Cyber patrols are a surveillance and monitoring activity carried out in digital space to detect, prevent and take action against various forms of cybercrime.
This is because Article 7 paragraph (4) of the TNI Law emphasises that the implementation of OMSP is further regulated by a government regulation (PP) or presidential regulation (Perpres), except for assisting the National Police in the context of security and public order duties as regulated under the law.
"Meanwhile, the regulation of the related OMSP duties under a PP or Perpres has not been implemented", he said.
Yosarie added that this phenomenon not only reflects the regression of TNI reforms but also accelerates digital repression that threatens democracy and freedom of expression. Digital repression is a form of restriction or violation of citizens' digital rights, especially the rights to freedom of expression, access to information and privacy in digital space.
Instead of strengthening cyber defence capacity to face external threats such as attacks from transnational state or non-state actors, the TNI has instead taken over law enforcement functions that should be the domain of the National Police and other civilian institutions.
This practice has given rise to a digital dual function (dwi-fungsi): the military not only maintains national defence, but also patrols and follows up on suspected crimes in cyberspace.
In the current political context, this move has the potential to become an instrument for controlling the public narrative, worsening the trend of shrinking civic space that has become a concern for national and international civil society, and opening up the legitimacy of repressive actions against civilians in digital space.
"The practice of cyber patrols targeting civil society activism in the digital realm sets a dangerous precedent for normalising military involvement in cyber law enforcement, without adequate accountability mechanisms. Without clear boundaries and parliamentary and public oversight, TNI cyber operations have the potential to become an instrument of digital repression that silences criticism and controls the public narrative", he said.
"Instead of strengthening cyber defences to counter external threats, this involvement shifts the military's role to the realm of law enforcement, eroding the principle of civilian supremacy, and paving the way for abuses of power that could target civilians", he added.
He said that the TNI's involvement in securing demonstrations, both directly and in digital space, needs to be stopped if the relevant authorities are still capable of handling it. Because this involvement could have problems from a paradigm perspective.
For civil society, demonstrations are a manifestation of freedom of expression and the political rights of citizens as guaranteed by the Constitution and other laws and regulations.
"Demonstrations are positioned as a corrective mechanism against state power, as well as part of public participation in the political process. Conversely, within the military paradigm, demonstrations can be interpreted as a form of socio-political instability that has the potential to disrupt public order and national security. Consequently, stability can be achieved through coercive force that violates citizens' constitutional rights", he said.
Cyber Unit commander visits Metro Jaya police
On Monday, TNI Headquarters Cyber Unit Commander (Dansat Siber) Brigadier General Juinta Omboh Sembiring visited the Metro Jaya Regional Police for consultations on alleged criminal acts Malaka Project CEO Ferry Irwandi.
Prior to this, Sembiring stated that he had contacted Irwandi to inquire about the alleged violation of the law. However, he received no response. "We tried (to contact Ferry), his cell phone was dead, we couldn't contact him, so my staff contacted him", he said at the Metro Jaya Regional Police Headquarters in South Jakarta on Monday.
Sembiring also touched on the algorithms discussed by Irwandi. "I've (already) tried consulting with him because he talked about algorithms and other things. As commander of the Cyber Unit, I also have similar concerns", he said.
The one-star general was reluctant to reveal the alleged criminal acts committed by Irwandi and did not say whether he had filed a police report or not. Meanwhile the alleged crime committed by Irwandi was the result of a cyber patrol. "Furthermore, as law-abiding citizens, we naturally prioritise the law, so we will take legal action regarding this alleged crime", he said.
Notes
Ferry Irwandi has gained attention recently as one of the influencers behind the "17+8 People's Demands" movement, alongside public figures such as Fathia Izzati and Andovi da Lopez. In 2023 he founded the educational platform the Malaka Project and has since built a strong online following with 1.92 million YouTube subscribers. He frequently uploads political commentary including videos on the recent August protests and riots. Eight days ago he posted "The Puppet Master of the Protests and Preventing a Military Emergency", followed two days later by "A Full Explanation of the Series of Protests and Solutions".
[Slightly abridged translation by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Setara Institute: Patroli Siber TNI Mengarah pada Represi Digital".]