Even in the face of strong public protest over a set of proposed revisions to criminal laws that infringe Indonesians’ free expression rights, the Indonesian Ministry of Law and Human Rights last month sent to the Parliament a new draft of the Criminal Code (CC) that threatens to further chill political dissent and civic participation. In particular, it contains provisions that criminalize defamation and insult of public officials, including the President and members of the government.
Indonesians deserve a reformed CC that protects fundamental rights to express their opinions, including criticizing and disagreeing with elected officials and the government. The new draft instead robs people of these rights. EFF joins its global partners in calling on the Indonesian Parliament to hold inclusive and meaningful public consultations and revise the new draft CC in line with Indonesia’s international human rights obligations.
Lack of Meaningful Public Discussions
The CC, a law with Dutch colonial legacy, has been in reform since 1958. One of the latest drafts was introduced in 2019, when the government announced that a new code would be adopted soon—without ever making it public. That sparked protests, forcing the government to release the draft code, which in turn prompted massive demonstrations across Indonesia about the code’s infringement on free expression. The public was concerned with a number of provisions, ranging from criminalizing adultery and blasphemy to the impact on minorities and civil society. The government did not move forward with that draft.
The Indonesian government now has a track record of failing to hold public consultations around amendments to the CC. In June, it announced a new draft CC, and again didn’t release it publicly. After pressure from civil society, the government made the draft of 632 articles
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