“Personal health data is a very sensitive data that should the government release one patient’s data, it might lead to him or her being subject to discrimination by the rest of society,” Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (ELSAM) deputy director Wahyudi Djafar told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

He was referring to a plan by the national COVID-19 task force to release patients’ personal data in an effort to encourage adherence to health protocols in affected areas. Task force chief and National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) head Doni Monardo said such data would only be made available to people living in the patients’ neighborhoods.

"Current regulations don't allow authorities to publish patient data. But if this data could be known by people living in their neighborhoods, it could help the surrounding community prepare preventive actions," Doni told a hearing with House of Representatives Commission VIII overseeing social affairs on Monday, as quoted by kompas.com.

While suggesting that such data should be published for the sake of public safety, Doni asked people to stop stigmatizing COVID-19 and condemned unjust treatment of people with the illness.

Constitutionally, the state is required to protect people’s privacy and personal data. However, the country has never passed a specific law on personal data protection to enumerate the rights of data owners and establish what kinds of data are legally considered personal.

Wahyudi said the protection of an individual’s personal data was guaranteed under Article 28G, section 1 of the 1945 Constitution. Furthermore, patients’ health data is also protected under multiple laws including Law No. 36/2009 on health and Law No. 29/2004 on medical practice.

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