TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Amnesty International Indonesia documented that approximately 5,538 people were victims of repressive actions by security forces during demonstrations throughout the first year of the administration of President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka. The organization concluded that human rights conditions during this year of government experienced the worst erosion due to a surge in authoritarian policies, actions, and practices.
Amnesty International Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid explained that the thousands of victims of security force violence stemmed from various demonstrations since early 2025, including protests against the revision of the TNI Law in March, demonstrations demanding workers' welfare in May, and protests against the increase in allowances for members of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) in August.
"The breakdown includes 4,453 arrests, 744 incidents of physical violence, and 341 instances of the use of water cannons and tear gas," Usman detailed in a report released on Monday, October 20, 2025.
Failure to Investigate Fatalities and Branding of Protesters
Following the August 2025 demonstrations, 12 activists remain in detention as suspects of incitement, and two are reported missing. Furthermore, the state is deemed to be not serious about investigating the 10 fatalities that occurred during the protests last August. Usman specifically cited the cancellation of the formation of the Joint Fact-Finding Team.
"In fact, it is crucial to uncover the actors most responsible. The National Police Reform Committee has also evaporated," he said.
Instead of evaluating policies and ensuring police accountability, Amnesty believes the President has instead branded protesters with negative labels such as anarchists, treason, foreigners, and even terrorists. In reality, the victims include students, schoolchildren, literacy activists, and ordinary citizens.
Additionally, the issuance of National Police Chief Regulation Number 4 of 2025 on September 29th, concerning the Prosecution of Assaults on the National Police, is cause for concern. According to Amnesty International Indonesia, this policy effectively loosens police authority, particularly regarding the use of firearms.
Violence Outside of Demonstrations
Amnesty also noted 119 victims of violence by officers outside of the handling of demonstrations. This figure details abuse stemming from 13 arrests, physical violence against 93 people, torture against 27 people, shootings against 9 people, extortion against 5 people, and extrajudicial killings against 42 people.
Another erosion of civil liberties is reflected in the continuing attacks on human rights defenders, which totaled 268 cases. These hundreds of cases involve 46 reports to the police, 17 arrests, 35 criminalizations, 6 attempted murders, 153 physical attacks, and attacks on the workplaces of human rights defenders, reaching 11 institutions.
"Journalists and indigenous activists experienced the most attacks, with 112 victims and 81 victims, respectively," said Usman.
Repression also continues in Papua. These acts include an arrest in Sorong last April, a treason trial in late August, the use of tear gas that killed a resident in Manokwari, and the arrest of five protesters against investment and remilitarization in Jayapura on October 15.
The Erosion of Democratic Space
Whatever the reason, according to Usman, humans have the right to humane treatment. "Especially if they express critical discourse in civil spaces. If critical voices of the opposition are silenced, an atmosphere of fear will be created," he warned.
Amnesty International Indonesia assesses that there has been no significant progress on human rights since the Prabowo-Gibran inauguration on October 20, 2024, either in terms of freedom from fear or from a sense of deprivation.
"On the contrary, there has been the worst erosion during the reform era. Policies that violated human rights during the previous administration have continued. The pattern is the same: without active citizen participation," Usman concluded.
Editor's Choice: Amnesty International: Human Rights Situation Has Deteriorated Under Prabowo-Gibran's One-Year Rule
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