First enacted in 2008, the ITE Law was designed to safeguard rights for individuals navigating online spaces, electronic transactions, intellectual property rights, and other business or consumer affairs. However, despite an amendment in 2016 under President Joko Widodo, elements of the ITE Law that threaten freedom of expression have remained untouched through each review process.
The ITE law has long been derided by press freedom groups as having the potential to crack down on critical journalism, human rights defenders, and women. On 29 January 2020, journalist Muhammad Asrul was sentenced to 3 months in prison after a court in Palopo, South Sulawesi found that he had violated Articles 27 and 45 of the ITE Law. Through their monitoring, AJI found that between 2008 and 2016, 38 further journalists were reported under the law, with four imprisoned by courts across Indonesia.
On December 5, Indonesia’s parliament approved the draft second amendment to the ITE Law in a plenary meeting, with the legal definition of defamation narrowed, maximum sentences halved from four to two years, and charges requiring a higher burden of proof. Minister of Communication and Information Budi Arie Setiadi has claimed the amendment will ensure freedom of expression in line with moral, religious and public order considerations. Rights organisations have criticised the revised draft of the ITE Law as demonstrating a regrettable lack of improvement and a failure to harmonise with the new Criminal Code, retaining contentious articles on hate speech, defamation and false news.
Prior to the bill’s approval, AJI Indonesia launched a petition for a joint statement alongside a global coalition of over 66 Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and trade unions, which called on Indonesia’s legislature and government to delay the final draft process of the amendment, engage in thorough and transparent dialogues with stakeholders, and to uphold democracy by desisting from the reckless or rushed ascensions of law to parliament.
The AJI said: “We regret that the Indonesian Parliament has passed the amendment to the ITE Law, which contains problematic articles that undermine freedom of expression and freedom of the press. Moreover, the issuance of the ITE Law revision was done ahead of the election and can be misused easily to silence critics.”
The IFJ said: “The amendments to Indonesia’s ITE Law retain dangerous clauses, which have been proven to target activists, journalists and media workers. The failure of Indonesian authorities to adequately engage with stakeholders has meant that threats to freedom of expression ahead of historic national elections remain. The IFJ urges authorities to further amend the law to uphold human rights in Indonesia through a transparent and thorough consultative process.”