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View all search resultsDeputy human rights minister slammed for proposing state funding for NGOs
Civil groups have slammed a suggestion by the deputy rights minister to do away with foreign intervention by having NGOs get state funding, amid the government’s plan to codify anti-foreign propaganda drives.
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Members of civil groups and labor unions march with flags and signs on Sept. 4, 2025 during a protest against police repression, during nationwide demonstrations, in Jakarta. (AFP/Aditya Irawan)
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ivil society groups have slammed a suggestion by deputy human rights minister to fund nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) with state budget over concerns about foreign donor influence, amid the government’s plan to codify anti-foreign propaganda drives.
Speaking to a limited number of media outlets on Thursday, deputy minister Mugiyanto Sipin shared his thoughts on the roles of a country’s NGOs and said they could unknowingly spread another country’s agenda due to the foreign funding they receive.
The deputy minister cited an example of former United States secretary of state Colin Powell’s 2001 directive to US ambassadors to support NGOs in their respective countries, as they were the US’ “combat team” for its geopolitical missions.
“When we work in NGOs, we don’t feel like we are pursuing the agenda of the US or any donor country,” Mugiyanto said. “But on the [donor country’s] side, they do intend [the funding] for their own [needs]. Without us realizing it, we are also serving their interests.”
He then suggested that NGOs in Indonesia should be funded by the state to avoid foreign funding and ensure that they work “in Indonesia’s interests as a nation”.
A coalition of 25 civil society organizations, including human rights watchdogs Amnesty International Indonesia and Imparsial, has since denounced Mugiyanto’s comment for its “misleading and ahistorical oversimplification” of NGOs that dismisses their roles as part of the checks and balances in a democratic state.
“Equating international support with hidden agendas or threats to sovereignty is an outdated narrative repeatedly used by powers that are allergic to criticism,” the coalition said in a statement on Saturday.
