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Seven social media managers arrested in relation to omnibus jobs law protests
The police claim the social media accounts were used to incite rioting during the protests.
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A student holds up a #MosiTidakPercaya (vote of no confidence) poster during a protest against the Job Creation Law in Jakarta on Oct.7. (JP/P.J. Leo)
T
he National Police’s Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim) has arrested and named seven social media managers suspects in connection to the recent wave of protests against the Job Creation Law.
Bareskrim general crimes director Brig. Gen. Ferdy Sambo said the seven suspects either managed WhatsApp groups or accounts on social media platforms, alleging they played vital roles in the series of protests occurring in Jakarta between Oct. 8 and 13.
"Three suspects are administrators of WhatsApp groups comprising vocational school students from across Greater Jakarta, three are administrators of a Greater Jakarta-based Facebook [page] and one is an administrator of the Instagram account @panjang.umur.perlawanan [long.live.resistance],” Ferdy told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
He claimed that the accounts were used to incite rioting during the protests. The Facebook page alone gained around 21,000 followers, he said.
The police have charged the suspects under multiple articles of the Criminal Code, including Article 160 on provocation to commit criminal acts, which carries a maximum sentence of six years’ imprisonment.
Read also: Waves of protests continue against jobs law, coinciding with Jokowi-Maruf's first anniversary
Protests against the Job Creation Law -- which critics said could potentially undermine labor and environmental rights -- have now entered their third week in Jakarta and other major cities in Indonesia after the House of Representatives passed the bill into law on Oct. 5.
The National Police previously said protests had occurred in all 34 provinces of the country as of Oct. 8.
In Jakarta alone, the police had named 131 as suspects as of Tuesday for allegedly rioting during the series of rallies in the capital.
Amid the protests, the Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) noted that Twitter accounts of civil groups that had been critical of the jobs law were blocked from the platform.
The digital rights watchdog accused the government of being behind the restrictions, claiming that they were part of a systematic effort to muzzle political speech in the country, particularly against the new law.
