Police attack, injure and arbitrarily arrest protesters, including children

Journalists threatened, intimidated and subjected to unlawful force

‘Police forces across several cities in Indonesia violently repressed the protests, blatantly disregarding the right to freedom of expression’ - Usman Hamid

Responding to the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters by the Indonesian police yesterday, Usman Hamid, Amnesty International Indonesia's Executive Director, said:

“Even though the protests were peaceful, police forces across several cities in Indonesia violently repressed the protests, blatantly disregarding the right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.

“This is only the latest incident of many where unnecessary and excessive force has been used while policing protests. These repeated incidents attest to the authorities’ failure to respect, facilitate and protect the right to protest, which is guaranteed under both national and international human rights law.

“Protesters who took to the streets to voice their aspirations were met with excessive force including beatings, which may amount to torture and other ill-treatment. Journalists who covered the protests were also subjected to intimidation, threats, and unlawful force by the police, leading to a violation of their right to physical integrity and their freedom of expression.

“Dozens of protesters, including minors, were arbitrarily arrested and detained without due process or any sufficient or credible evidence.

“Indonesian authorities must immediately conduct an impartial and effective investigation into the incidents and hold perpetrators accountable in fair trials. It is imperative for the police to understand that isolated acts of violence   do not justify the use unlawful force against   protesters.

“The police must also immediately release all those arbitrarily arrested in the crackdown and ensure their access to legal counsel and medical treatment.”

Police brutality

Thousands of protesters took to the streets yesterday in Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Makassar, and other major cities protesting the House of Representatives’ plan to change the election law. Amnesty Indonesia and partner organisations found that police forces used unlawful force and arbitrarily arrested protesters.

The Advocacy Team for Democracy told Amnesty that as of 11am on 23 August police arrested at least 105 people, including 27 adults and 78 children, following protests in Jakarta; a Jakarta Legal Aid Institute staff member and the Director of Lokataru Foundation, a human rights organisation, were injured during the protest. At least nine others, including university students, were injured by police and at least seven journalists reported being subjected to intimidation and threats.

In Bandung in West Java province, a video obtained by Amnesty shows police officers chasing protesters, hitting them with batons and stomping on their bodies. In Semarang, Central Java province, at least 15 university students were brought to hospital suffering shortness of breath, nausea, sore eyes and fainting after police used tear gas to disperse protesters.

This is not the first time police used unlawful force when policing of protests, in 2020, Amnesty verified 51 videos depicting 43 separate incidents of unlawful use of force by Indonesian police during protests between 6 October and 10 November.