Damai Coalition Public Statement
Stop Arbitrary Takedowns: A Serious Threat to Freedom of Expression
Jakarta, 19 June 2025 – We, the Coalition for the Democratization and Moderation of Indonesia’s Digital Space (Damai Coalition), a coalition of 16 civil society organizations and individuals concerned with content moderation issues in Indonesia, strongly condemn the request by the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) to X (formerly Twitter) to remove history-related content from several accounts on the platform. The takedown request targeted at least two accounts: @neohistoria_id and @perupadata. Both accounts had posted critical content related to the sexual violence during the May 1998 riots. The issue has resurfaced in public discourse following recent statements from government officials denying the occurrence of systematic sexual violence during that period.
On 18 June 2025, the historical education account @neohistoria_id received an email from X notifying that the platform had received a report from Komdigi claiming the account had violated Indonesian law. The content in question was an educational post uploaded by @neohistoria_id on 17 June 2025. The post read: “Ave Neohistorian! Long before Fadli Zon, Wiranto—then Commander of the Armed Forces—made a similar claim that the May 1998 riots never happened [A THREAD]”. The tweet was accompanied by a photo of Wiranto in military uniform with the caption: “WIRANTO: THERE WAS NO MASS RAPE IN MAY 1998” (link).
On the same day, @perupadata received a similar email from X regarding a post uploaded on 15 June 2025 that read: “The Minister of Culture is rewriting history, but ignoring the dark record of mass rape during the 1998 riots. In fact, data shows 152 people were victims of sexual violence during the critical period, 20 of whom died.” (link)
The email cited alleged violations of Indonesian law but failed to specify which part of the content was considered unlawful or on what legal basis. This lack of clarity reflects a troubling absence of transparency in the takedown process, opening the door to abuse of power.
Such actions violate freedom of expression, because without accountability and transparent appeal mechanisms, takedown practices like these can be used to silence criticism of government policies. Other public discussions have also faced similar takedown requests by Komdigi. The account @ZakkiAmali faced a complaint for a post highlighting nickel mining in Raja Ampat (link), while @MF_Rais was reported for content related to trade negotiations between Indonesia and the U.S. (link).
Southeast Asia Freedom of Expression Network (SAFEnet) as a Damai Coalition member has documented a surge in takedown requests targeting content critical of state governance, including during the 2024 election, opposition to nickel mining, and criticism of public officials. This recurring pattern shows a growing tendency of state interference in digital spaces, particularly targeting critical content, which endangers democracy and civil liberties online.
Based on the issues and concerns outlined above, the Damai Coalition demands:
- Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs, Meutya Hafid, must immediately stop arbitrary content moderation on social media platforms and uphold the constitutional mandate to protect freedom of expression, if the contested content is journalistic in nature, resolution must go through the Press Council complaint mechanism, not through direct intervention with digital platforms.
- All social media corporations must demonstrate their commitment to protecting freedom of expression by rejecting takedown requests from the Indonesian government that are not accompanied by transparent, proportional justifications aligned with international human rights standards;
- Commission I of the House of Representatives (DPR RI) must fulfill its oversight function by thoroughly evaluating Komdigi’s authority to control social media content, and review its pattern of arbitrary content moderation.
Media contact: 08179323375 (SAFEnet)
About the Damai Coalition
The Coalition for the Democratization and Moderation of Indonesia’s Digital Space (Damai Coalition) comprises 16 civil society organizations and individuals dedicated to engaging with social media platforms to advise on content moderation policies and practices, risk assessments, and protocols for addressing election-related disinformation and hate speech—grounded in deep expertise and understanding of sociocultural complexities on the ground.
Damai Coalition members:
- AJI Indonesia
- AMSI
- CfDS UGMx
- CSIS Indonesia
- ECPAT Indonesia
- ELSAM
- ICT Watch
- Jaringan Gusdurian
- LP3ES
- Mafindo
- SAFEnet
- Tifa Foundation
- Perludem
- PR2Media
- Remotivi
- Wikimedia Indonesia
