The Jakarta Post
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsHate speech verdict against Jerinx ‘unacceptable’: SAFEnet
SAFEnet executive director Damar Juniarto said the judges had made a mistake in interpreting the definition of hate speech under the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Set as preferred source
T
he Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) has criticized the hate speech verdict handed down against Bali-based musician I Gede Ari Astina, better known as Jerinx, saying his conviction was "unacceptable".
The Denpasar District Court in Bali sentenced Jerinx to 14 months in prison with a fine of Rp 10 million (US$706) on Thursday after finding him guilty of spreading hate speech against the Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) through his social media account.
SAFEnet executive director Damar Juniarto said the judges had made a mistake in interpreting the definition of hate speech under the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law.
"It is unacceptable that the court hands down such a verdict. The clause that the judges charged against him has been used incorrectly all this time to define hate speech," Damar said on Thursday.
Jerinx was charged for violating Article 28 of the ITE Law, which bans the spread of information aimed at fueling hatred based on ethnicity, religion or race after accusing the IDI of being “flunkeys” of the World Health Organization in a post on his Instagram account.
"Because they’re proud of being the WHO’s flunkeys, the IDI and hospitals arbitrarily mandated that anyone who is about to give birth be tested for COVID-19,” Jerinx wrote on his Instagram account, @jrxsid, on June 13. “There is so much evidence that the test results are inaccurate, so why force it? If the test causes stress or death for the baby or mother, who will take responsibility?"
Damar said that although it was possible that Jerinx's Instagram post could influence people's opinions, it could not be categorized as an "information that could incite hate or hostility" against a certain group of people.
