Hanifah Salsabila, David Oliver Purba, Jakarta – Amnesty International Indonesia Executive Director Usman Hamid believes that Laras Faizati's probationary sentence of one year of supervision is the same as imprisonment without bars.
According to Hamid, the South Jakarta District Court's verdict appears to confirm the view that criticising the government is a criminal offense.
"This probationary sentence is a 'prison without bars' for Laras. Even though she is free under supervision, she still holds the status of 'guilty' simply for expressing her thoughts, opinions, and criticism", said Hamid in a statement on Friday January 16.
There are concerns that this verdict will stifle freedom of expression, which is should be held in the highest regard in a democratic system.
Hamid also touched on similar cases involving activists Delpedro Marhaen, Muzaffar Salim, Syahdan Husein and Khariq Anhar, who are currently on trial at the Central Jakarta District Court.
According to Hamid, this series of cases is part of law enforcement's handling of the riots during the demonstrations at the end of August 2025.
"This succession of criminalisation is a punitive measure against civil liberties, as if the authorities are looking for scapegoats to punish people in response to the August 2025 demonstrations", said Hamid.
A similar view was expressed by the Advocacy Team for Democracy (TAUD).
TAUD advocate Afif Abdul Qoyyim believes the verdict against Faizati is dangerous and has the potential to set a bad precedent for freedom of expression in Indonesia.
"The verdict is actually very dangerous because it will be a benchmark that our freedom of expression is truly worrying", Qoyyim told Kompas.com on Thursday January 15.
Qoyyim is encouraging Faizati and her legal team to pursue further legal action, such as an appeal or cassation in order to obtain a full release.
"However, the most important thing is that the verdict must continue to be challenged, both in the High Court and at the cassation level [Supreme Court], so that judges can guarantee that freedom of expression is a human right that must continue to be maintained amidst our increasingly narrowing democratic climate", said Qoyyim.
Judges' considerations
The South Jakarta District Court found Faizati guilty of inciting the burning of the National Police Headquarters (Mabes Polri) building during the August demonstrations.
For her actions, the panel of judges sentenced her to six months in prison. Faizati however was not required to serve the sentence in a correctional facility.
"[We therefore] hand down a sentence against the defendant of six months in prison and order that the sentence be waived", said presiding judge I Ketut Darpawan at the hearing on Thursday.
The panel of judges declared Faizati guilty because they considered one of her four social media posts to be a form of incitement.
According to the judges, the sentence Faizati posted in the midst of the heated social situation caused by the wave of protests could potentially be interpreted as an invitation to commit a crime, regardless of Faizati's status as neither an activist nor a public figure.
The posting was a photo of Faizati taken from inside the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) building with the National Police Headquarters building in the background. Accompanying the photo, Faizati wrote an expression of her anger in English.
"If your office is right next to the Mabes Polri, please burn this building down and arrest them all. I really want to help throw stones, but my mother wants me to come home. Sending strength to all protesters", Faizati wrote, as translated into Indonesian.
The panel of judges deemed the selection of the photo specifically depicting the National Police Headquarters building to be deliberate and fulfilled the elements of a violation under Article 161 of the old Criminal Code (KUHP, before it was revised in 2025) on incitement.
Meanwhile, the other three posts were deemed to just mock the police and expressing condolences for the death of Affan Kurniawan, who died after being run over by a pra-military police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) tactical vehicle from the Jakarta Metro Jaya Regional Police on August 28, 2025.
In their ruling, the panel of judges also requested that Kurniawan's death be thoroughly investigated. This follows allegations that Faizati was doxed after expressing her grief over the incident.
"The police must also be fair by conducting a serious and open investigation into the incident. With the authority and resources they have, it will certainly not be difficult to uncover the truth about the incident", said the judges.
In addition to this, the panel of judges considered that Faizati's actions were limited to postings on social media without any follow up efforts such as organising protesters or directly inviting people to commit arson.
The judges also considered that Faizati has a good track record and character, and was cooperative during the trial so it was inappropriate for her to spend time behind bars.
Based on these considerations, Faizati was sentenced to one year of probationary supervision, including an obligation to be a more responsible social media user.
The sentencing referred to Article 70 paragraph (1) of the new Criminal Code, which stipulates that first-time offenders with a sentence of less than five years can be sentenced to correctional facilities outside of correctional facilities.
Faizati was given one week to decide whether to accept the judge's verdict or file an appeal.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Vonis Bebas Bersyarat Laras Faizati: Penjara Tanpa Jeruji".]
