Prisoners of Conscience Cases in Indonesia: The Rights of Fair Trial Perspective
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Jun 1, 2025
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Abstract
This study examines cases of prisoners of conscience (PoC) in Indonesia through the lens of the right to a fair trial. The patterns observed in these PoC cases include arbitrary arrest, imprisonment, torture, exile, and even enforced disappearance. Various examples illustrate these issues. According to data gathered by Amnesty International Indonesia, there are numerous instances related to PoC. Between August 2019 and April 2024, there were 128 prisoners of conscience (PoC) related to 82 cases in Indonesia. The same source indicates that many of these prisoners were incarcerated solely for their peaceful expressions. They have been charged under various laws, including the Information and Electronic Transactions Law, as well as laws concerning criminal blasphemy, treason, and pornography. This research uses normative juridical methods, specifically focusing on library legal research to examine secondary data and relevant legal materials. The approach adopted in this study is a statutory approach, which entails referencing legal issues or problems specifically pertaining to cases involving prisoners of conscience. This study also examines cases of PoC in Indonesia from the perspective of the right to a fair trial. It highlights the numerous violations of fair trial rights evident in the patterns of arrests leading to imprisonment in these cases.
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PRAWIRA, M. Rizki Yudha.
Prisoners of Conscience Cases in Indonesia: The Rights of Fair Trial Perspective.
UNISKA LAW REVIEW, [S.l.], v. 5, n. 2, p. 133 - 153, june 2025.
ISSN 2774-5252.
Available at: <https://ejournal.uniska-kediri.ac.id/index.php/SJ/article/view/6870>. Date accessed: 29 june 2025.
doi: https://doi.org/10.32503/ulr.v5i2.6870.
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Articles
References
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———. “Indonesia: An Amnesty International Report.” London, 1977. https://www.amnesty.org/en/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/asa210221977en.pdf.
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Anshari. “Delik Terhadap Keamanan Negara (Makar) Di Indonesia (Suatu Nalisis Yuridis Normatif Pada Studi Kasus Sultan Hamid II).” Jurnal Hukum & Pembangunan 48, no. 3 (2018): 457–505. https://doi.org/10.21143/jhp.vol48.no3.1742.
Article 19. The Johannesburg Principles on National Security, Freedom of Expression and Access to Information (1996). https://www.article19.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/joburg-principles.pdf.
Committee Againts Torture. “Concluding Observations on the Initial Report of Indonesia, Report of the Committee Against Torture Twenty-Seventh Session (12-23 November 2001) and Twenty-Eighth Session (29 April-17 May 2002.” 2008. https://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=sah0drD2N2kq5bZlX0%2FUxjsw9ZTAtU7HgUgftmjPSUsdxk1tiAKE3y1PBhTfrrfM8tcTr0zoYhiz74Ssrg9gpg%3D%3D.
Dewi Pramesti, Masitha. “Konstruksi Identitas Tahanan Politik Orde Baru Dalam Novel Amba Karya Laksmi Pamuntjak.” Journal.Unair.Ac.Id 4, no. 2 (2015): 241–58.
Fia, and Ade. “Bebas Namun Perlu Dilakukan Pendampingan.” Cendrawasih Pos, 2025. https://cenderawasihpos.jawapos.com/berita-utama/23/12/2024/bebas-namun-perlu-dilakukan-pendampingan/2/#google_vignette.
Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom. “Prisoners of Conscience: Political Prisoners from East and Southeast Europe.” Sofia, 2021. https://www.freiheit.org/sites/default/files/2021-07/prisonersofconscience_report_digital.pdf.
Global Freedom of Expressioon. “The Case of Filep Karma.” Global Freedom of Expressioon, 2015. https://globalfreedomofexpression.columbia.edu/cases/indonesia-v-filep-karma/.
Human Rights Committee. General Comment No. 34 Article 19: Freedoms of Opinion and Expression (2011). https://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/15/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?symbolno=CCPR%2FC%2FGC%2F34&Lang=en.
KontraS, and ICTJ. Menyusun Puzzle Pelanggaran HAM 1965: Sebuah Upaya Pendokumentasian. Jakarta: Komisi Orang Hilang dan Korban Tindak Kekerasan, 2012.
Marzuki, Peter Mahmud. Penelitian Hukum. Jakarta: Kencana, 2011.
Safety of Journalist Platform. “Journalist Polad Aslanov Arrested, Jailed and Charged with High Treason.” Safety of Journalist Platform, 2022. https://fom.coe.int/en/alerte/detail/49403179.
Soekanto, Soerjono, and Sri Mahmudji. Penelitian Hukum Normatif, Suatu Tinjauan Singkat. Jakarta: Raja Grafindo Persada, 2003.
Supartono, Alex. Pelepasan Tahanan Politik Peristiwa September 1965. Jakarta: Yayasan Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Indonesia, 1998.
UN Human Rights Committee. Concluding observations on the initial report of Indonesia, 21 Agustus 2013, Paragraph 19, UN Doc. CCPR/C/IDN/CO/1, Pub. L. No. CCPR/C/SR.2984, 2985 and 2986 (2013). https://docstore.ohchr.org/SelfServices/FilesHandler.ashx?enc=Vb6HUdgRVuXrvpykE6x2K1MrHkvz3IYIbAQHPiguL88Z2YbS1smnyJGguyp9SilDD5NbIVCG3aElhEjGAlJplw%3D%3D.