Study: Indonesian police reforms stalled, ‘culture of violence’ persists

Tria Dianti
2024.10.09
Study: Indonesian police reforms stalled, ‘culture of violence’ persists A riot police member detains a protestor after clashes following a student rally in Jakarta, Sept. 26, 2019.
[Willy Kurniawan/Reuters]

Nearly a quarter century since Indonesia’s transition to democracy, the national police, once an instrument of authoritarianism, remains riddled with a “culture of violence” and has little accountability, according to a new study released Wednesday. 

Meanwhile, changes proposed in a bill revising a law that governs the police would expand the force’s powers to include national security without giving teeth to its oversight body, critics say.

Of the 130 problems identified in the police force, a majority, 72, are related to failures in maintaining the rule of law, said the study by the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy 

“Polri reforms have not yet shown significant progress,” the report said, using the acronym for the national police. 

“The police must become more democratic and accountable. … If they fail to reform, it could affect Indonesia’s progress toward becoming a secure and prosperous democracy,” said Ismail Hasani, one of the report’s authors.


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The report listed serious misconduct, including cases of torture leading to the deaths of detainees, coercion for confessions, and the falsification of signatures. Other troubling issues were forced arrests without official warrants, extortion, and unlawful searches. 

On the flip side, accountability and transparency within the police was severely lacking, the report said. 

The Setara study, conducted from June 1-5, involved interviews with 167 experts across 50 Indonesian cities and towns. 

Reform efforts began after Indonesia separated its police force from the military in 2000, two years after the fall of Suharto, the long-time autocratic president. The move was part of a push to democratize security forces.

But the reforms have been haphazard, the report said.

“Despite sporadic changes such as the modernization of public services, Polri still faces systematic challenges in contributing to the strengthening of national resilience and governance,” it stated.

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Members of the riot police use a water cannon to disperse demonstrators outside the parliament building in Jakarta on Aug. 22, 2024. [Bay Ismoyo/AFP]

While the report acknowledged some progress, such as in the digitalization of public services, persistent issues include a growing perception that justice is only served when cases gain viral attention online.

Indonesians deeply distrust the police’s ability to handle complaints effectively.

According to the study, 61.7% of surveyed experts rated the police force’s performance as poor, while only 16.8% viewed it positively.

“This has triggered public frustration expressed through social media, such as the emergence of various taglines about the police by the public, including #noviralnojustice,” said Ikhsan Yosarie, a researcher at Setara. 

The Setara report urged the police to strengthen oversight mechanisms and improve the quality of education and training for police officers.

KontraS, another human rights organization, reported 654 incidents of violence by police officers between July 2023 and June 2024, which resulted in 37 deaths.  Amnesty International Indonesia documented at least 58 cases of arbitrary arrests by police involving 412 human rights defenders between 2019 and 2023.

Controversial bill 

Meanwhile, human rights groups and legal experts have criticized a draft National Police Law that proposes changes to the 2002 law that governs the force.

They have warned that the draft proposals could grant excessive powers to the police and curtail civil liberties.  

The proposed changes, currently under discussion in parliament, expand police authority in areas such as intelligence gathering, online surveillance, and wiretapping.

But alongside, the changes don’t address existing problems of police violence and accountability, critics say. Instead, the changes propose giving overly broad powers to the police, particularly in the digital realm.  

The changes would allow the police to monitor and control online spaces, including the power to take down content, block websites, and slow down internet access in the name of national security.

ID-PIC-FOUR.jpeg
Indonesian police Inspector Gen. Ferdy Sambo (center, in red vest), accused of murdering bodyguard Nofriansyah Yosua Hutabarat, is escorted to his trial at the South Jakarta Court in Jakarta, Oct. 17, 2022. [Adek Berry/AFP]

Public confidence in the police has been marred also in relation to other cases.

Indonesians have been shaken by high-profile cases like the murder of an officer in 2022 by the then-head of the police internal affairs division, a deadly stadium stampede two years ago, and the arrest of a former provincial police chief on drug charges the same year.

Police Commissioner Benny Iskandar, head of the General Policy Division at the National Police Headquarters, acknowledged the problems Setara’s report identified, blaming limited personnel and budget constraints as key obstacles in achieving reform goals.

“[One hundred and thirty] problems are a lot. Maybe it will be divided per five years in the future which target will be completed first,” Benny said during a discussion on the report. 

“Our target in 2045 is to be at least on par with world-class institutions.”

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