At least four media organisations have been targeted in digital attacks for publishing critical stories about the government's COVID-19 response.
This statement was originally published on ifj.org on 25 August 2020.
At least four media organisations have been targeted in an unprecedented series of digital attacks. On August 21, the Tempo news website was replaced with a black screen with the word ‘hoax’, in bold red font splashed across it. The same day articles, including two articles critical of the Indonesian intelligence agency’s role in the pandemic response, were removed from the website of tirto.id.
The Director of the Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers), Ade Wahyudin, on August 21 said the hacking is a legal violation. Wahyudin said there are mechanisms to deal with news reports deemed to be false, which involve submitting the right of reply or filing a complaint to the Press Council. AJI, which is also part of the Indonesian Journalists’ Safety Committee, together with the LBH Pers has opened a complaint centre for online media to report if they are targeted in the digital attacks.
AJI said: “We call on the police to investigate these digital attacks. The authorities must show that they will take serious efforts to find the mastermind behind the attacks. The authorities can not just simply ignore it since these attacks have threatened press freedom in the country.”
The IFJ said: “IFJ is gravely concerned by these hacking incidents and calls on authorities to conduct a thorough investigation. These online attacks impede press freedom by creating a climate of fear that could lead to self-censorship.”
