Hendrik Yaputra, Jakarta – Dimas Bagus Arya, the coordinator for the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (KontraS), said Indonesia's Prabowo Subianto has been maintaining the atrocious human rights conditions that were happening under former Joko Widodo's leadership.
According to Dimas, Prabowo's government has approved about 80 national strategic projects (PSN) that have led to human rights violations, such as forced evictions and the criminalization of indigenous communities.
"There are forced evictions, criminalization of indigenous communities, and environmental destruction," said Dimas after the discussion on Human Rights Day 2025 in Jakarta, Tuesday, December 9, 2025.
Dimas mentioned that Prabowo also perpetuated excessive force and police brutality while handling public demonstrations. During Jokowi's administration, the police also engaged in excessive force while handling the protesters during the KPK Bill and the Criminal Code Bill rallies.
Meanwhile, under Prabowo's authority, the police were using crowd control weapons carelessly and criminalized protesters in 4 major demonstrations this year. These protests include the rejection of the tax hike, the TNI Bill, teachers' protests, and the excessive allowance for lawmakers.
"In the protest last August, more than 957 people were charged," said Dimas.
According to Dimas, law enforcement and security handling in Prabowo's government have not changed much. Prabowo, he said, still uses brutal methods to suppress public aspirations.
KontraS reported 205 incidents of civil liberty violations during the first year of Prabowo's presidency. Dimas stated that 175 of these cases were allegedly carried out by the National Police.
"Meanwhile, 5 incidents were attributed to the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and 14 to the government," he added.
Out of the hundreds of reported incidents, a staggering total of 5,101 individuals became victims. These violations included 661 injuries, 134 acts of violence, and 4,291 arbitrary arrests.
The largest category, 4,291 arbitrary arrests, was dominated by detentions that occurred during the late August 2025 demonstrations. Dimas stressed that those participating in the protests should not have been arrested merely for expressing their grievances. "At that time, the community was expressing concern due to economic conditions," he said.
Tempo has requested a statement from Minister of Human Rights Natalius Pigai regarding this finding, but he said he will deliver it while commemorating Human Rights Day on December 10, 2025, tomorrow.
Widespread protests accompanied by riots occurred across various regions of Indonesia from August 25 to early September 2025.
The initial mobilization was sparked by dissent over the proposal of new allowances for members of the People's Consultative Assembly of the Republic of Indonesia, specifically housing allowances. These protests were compounded by the increase in property and land taxes in several regions, as well as pervasive public dissatisfaction with the government's perceived failure to adequately address economic disparities and the rising cost of living.
The protests tragically escalated into larger clashes after a ride-hailing driver, Affan Kurniawan, was hit and crushed by a police armored vehicle while authorities attempted to break through a crowd on Penjernihan Street.
Minister Coordinator for Legal Affairs, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra stated that nearly a thousand people were designated as suspects: "The number of suspects is now 997," he said in a press conference on September 26, 2025.
Chief of the Criminal Investigation Agency of the Indonesian National Police, Commissioner General Syahardiantono, provided a slightly lower figure: "In total, there are 959 suspects, consisting of 664 adults and 295 children," he reported on Wednesday, September 24, 2025.
– Vedro Imanuel Girsang contributed to the writing of this article.