APSN | Activists call for clear terms of defamation

Home > South-East Asia >> Indonesia

Activists call for clear terms of defamation

Jakarta Post - February 15, 2016

Government criticized for upholding libel article – Jakarta Post. January 27, 2016
Universities bow to religious hard-liners – Jakarta Post. January 22, 2016
Experts call for blasphemy articles to be removed from ITE Law – Jakarta Post. December 30, 2015
Experts blast new 'contempt of court' bill – Jakarta Globe. December 6, 2015
Police circular may threaten minorities – Jakarta Post. December 2, 2015

Fedina S. Sundaryani, Jakarta – As the House of Representatives begins deliberating on revisions to the electronic information law, activists have alerted the public to problematic articles that may violate freedom of speech.

The Electronic Information and Transaction (ITE) Law is a controversial regulation that has led to the arrest of people for expressing themselves on social media.

Supriyadi W. Eddyono of the Institute of Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) said on Saturday that Article 27 Point 3 of the law was the most prone to misuse, based on a study the group had conducted into 20 related criminal cases from 2009 to 2015.

"Point 3 of Article 3 of the ITE Law is the biggest threat to our right to free speech. From the 20 cases that have used [this article], we found only eight cases were examined in a proper legal frame," he said.

The article stipulates that those found guilty of distributing defamation or slander electronically can face a maximum prison sentence of six years or a fine of Rp 1 billion (US$74,211).

Supriyadi explained that the problem with this article stemmed from the law enforcement process, which was prone to abuses of power.

Although an alleged crime could only be investigated after a police report had been filed, Supriyadi said that the police had mistreated several cases by accepting reports against alleged perpetrators from people who were not themselves defamed or damaged by the comments that had become the subjects in the cases.

Furthermore, Supriyadi said investigators and prosecutors often only used printed screenshots of the electronic comments to prove the charges against the defendant, which could easily be edited and manipulated with several kinds of design software.

Supriyadi said that investigators should have forensic proof that the comments had come from the defendant's online account or electronic device. "What's worse is that when someone is charged with this article, they will end up in prison 70 percent of the time," he said.

Last Wednesday, House Commission I overseeing defense, foreign affairs and information held a meeting with several civil society groups to discuss what articles in the ITE Law should be revised. Legislators from Commission I cited Article 27 Point 3 as the clause they would pay close attention to.

Meanwhile, Rivai Kusumanegara, head of the Indonesian Advocates Association (Peradi), said that the article should be revised to include a distinction between criticism and defamation.

"Not all comments can be categorized as a crime. However, most prison terms have been passed down without looking at the context. There have been several cases where someone was merely disseminating information but it was perceived as an insult," he said. Rivai explained that the article was often used against people who criticized state policies.

"In my opinion, the article should be revised to refer to Article 311 [of the Criminal Code]. So, the ITE Law will only charge those who slander, which is when someone distributes misleading information on purpose," he said, adding that the law could also be revised so that electronic defamation and slander cases could be settled by a civil lawsuit.

Article 311 of the Criminal Code stipulates that anyone found guilty of slander can face a maximum sentence of four years in prison.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/02/15/activists-call-clear-terms-defamation.html.