AMBON/SURABAYA/JAKARTA, Indonesia — Criminal investigations of environmental advocates in Indonesia continue to undermine civil society in the world’s third-largest democracy, with two anti-mining activists the latest to be hauled before police following a routine demonstration. Investigators with the cybercrime directorate of Indonesia’s national police on Aug. 27 and Sep. 9 summoned university students Christina Rumalatu and Thomas Madilis for questioning over a potential violation of the Electronic Information and Transactions Law (ITE). The ITE law was introduced in 2008 and amended in 2016 to regulate online activities as millions of Indonesians accessed the internet for the first time on smartphones. Initially aimed at online crimes such as defamation, fraud and hacking, the ITE law has since faced widespread criticism for its overly broad application pertaining to free speech. The criminal investigation of Christina was tied to her recent advocacy work following devastating flooding in late July in Halmahera, the largest island in North Maluku province and a major nickel mining hub. Mongabay reported last month on flash floods and multiple landslides that affected several villages in Central and East Halmahera districts. The disaster forced at least 1,700 people to evacuate as a major arterial road was cut off by landslips, further isolating remote communities in Halmahera. Environmental advocates have linked flooding and other environmental impacts to landscape changes underway across vast areas of the Maluku and Sulawesi regions of Indonesia, the locations of the world’s largest reserves of nickel used in the production of batteries and steel. Between January 2019…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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