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Report on civil rights violations sparks concern over Indonesia's democracy
In its report launched Sunday, the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) found at least 78 major cases of alleged civil rights violations in the country as of October this year.
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Kamisan, a silent protest that has been held every Thursday since Jan. 18, 2007, by the Victims Solidarity Network for Justice, calls on the government to take action to resolve cases of past human rights violations. (JP/Narabeto Korohama)
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reedom of speech as a key civil liberty in a democratic Indonesia has shown deteriorating symptoms in recent years, as those who have protested against the government have faced violence and restrictions, according to a report.
In the report, released Sunday, the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) found 78 major cases of alleged civil rights violations in the country as of October this year.
The violations were grouped into seven categories, with the most common including criminalization, in which protesters were arrested, detained or named suspects; violence, ranging from intimidation to physical abuse; and illegal dispersion with the use of force, including with tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds.
The other four categories are restrictions to protests, with officers conducting raids and unwarranted searches and using policies to prevent people from joining them; post-protest persecution and kidnappings; restrictions on access to legal aid; and lastly privacy and data breaches through the confiscation and impairment of personal items as well as by doxing and hacking.
The violations were observed in various protests staged in 19 provinces across the country, starting with postelection protests in May and followed by protests concerning Papua, West Papua and other regions in August and September and large student rallies last month.
Smaller protests faced similar violations, including the weekly Kamisan protest, which in February saw the arrest of university lecturer Robertus Robet, who was named a suspect for allegedly insulting the Indonesian Military (TNI) by singing a song used famously to criticize forces during the New Order era.
The violations were mostly reported by university students, who account for 43 percent of the 6,128 victims who reported their cases to the YLBHI both online and offline.
