According to the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), there were 351 cases of civil rights violations across the country in 2020, the majority of which were violations against freedom of expression.
Violations occurred in North Sumatra, West Sumatra, South Sumatra, Lampung, Riau, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Java, Yogyakarta, Bali, South Sulawesi, North Sulawesi and Papua the group said in its 2020 Annual Report on Law and Human Rights released Tuesday.
YLBHI said that majority of violations or 48 percent were committed by state actors, noting that the police and the military were responsible for most. The group also said that educational institutions and certain social and mass organisations (ormas) were involved to a lesser extent.
YLBHI noted that criminalisation was the most common form of violation against freedom of expression in as many as 53 percent of cases, most of which involved the police. They also found volitions of the right to obtain and convey information which included the hacking of accounts, cyber bullying and legal threats.
The YLBHI concluded that the state continues to use a repressive approach which has further narrowing space for civil society and threatens the principles of democracy.
