Novali Panji Nugroho, Jakarta – The Advocacy Staff of the Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Press), Mustafa Layong, urged the government not to overlook the delivery of a pig's head addressed to the Tempo office. He pressed for the government to disclose the case.

"This is to ensure the press's rights to report independently," he said when contacted on Thursday, March 20, 2025.

LBH Press condemns the terror act carried out by unknown individuals against Tempo. He stated that Article 8 of the Press Law has stipulated legal protection for journalists while on duty.

"This act is very despicable and clearly a form of threat through the symbol of a pig's head," he said.

According to him, there is a message intended by the sender of the pig's head to the journalists and Tempo. He stated that the message is conveyed implicitly through the symbol of the pig's head.

Separately, Tempo's Editor-in-Chief Setri Yasra suspected this attempt as terror against Tempo's journalistic work. "We suspect this as an act of terror and a hindrance to journalistic work," he said.

However, freedom in the journalistic field should not be subjected to terror. Setri mentioned that journalists' performance is regulated by Law Number 40 of 1999 concerning the Press, which ensures the protection of the press and journalists in Indonesia.

"Press freedom should not be terrorized, disturbed, and intimidated for any reason. Because every media operates within the functions regulated by the law," he said.

Chronology of the pig's head terror at Tempo office

The Tempo office received a pig's head delivery on Wednesday, March 19, 2025. The pig's head was wrapped in a cardboard box lined with styrofoam.

The box containing the pig's head was addressed to "Cica". At Tempo, "Cica" is the nickname for Francisca Christy Rosana, a political desk journalist and host of the Bocor Alus Politik podcast.

She had just returned from covering a story with Hussein Abri Yusuf Muda Dongoran, a fellow political desk journalist and co-host of Bocor Alus Politik. After being informed about the package, she brought the cardboard box into the office.

It was Hussein who opened it. "The stench was already noticeable when we unsealed the box," he said. Suspecting it was an act of intimidation, he immediately grew wary as there was no sender's name on the package.

When the styrofoam lining was removed, Hussein saw the contents – a pig's head. "The smell became even stronger, and there was still blood on it," he said.

Hussein and several other journalists took the box outside the building. Once fully opened, the pig's head was clearly visible. "Both ears had been cut off," Hussein added.

– Raihan Muzaki contributed to the writing of this article.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1988812/lbh-pers-urges-govt-to-probe-pigs-head-terror-at-tempo-offic