TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) believes that President Prabowo Subianto's use of the term "londo ireng" (black Dutchman) against his critics further reinforces his anti-criticism stance. Prabowo applies this label to journalists, observers, civil society organizations, and other parties who criticize the government.
The Chair of the PBHI National Executive Board, Kahar Muamalsyah, stated that labeling a community group that carries out public oversight functions is a form of stigmatization against citizens' constitutional rights. "In a democratic state, criticism of the government is part of the checks and balances mechanism, not an act of hostility toward the state or government," Kahar said in a written statement on Sunday, July 26, 2026.
According to Kahar, criticism is a constitutional right of citizens and a primary prerequisite for a healthy democracy. Democracy, he said, is not built through labeling those with differing opinions, but rather through respect for civil liberties, openness to criticism, and the government's willingness to account for its policies to the public.
"Democracy actually presupposes a space for citizens to test, oversee, criticize, and evaluate the exercise of power," said Kahar.
Kahar also stated that the President, as the holder of a constitutional mandate, should respond to criticism as part of the dynamics of democracy and a form of citizen participation. According to him, the President must stop responding to public criticism with political rhetoric that insults critics, labels and stigmatizes them, silences public participation, and narrows the civil space in democracy.
"The President in a democratic country must protect his critics, not use criticism as an excuse to build rhetoric and narratives of hostility and insults against citizens," Kahar said.
President Prabowo Subianto used the term "londo ireng" (black people) to refer to critics of his policies during his speech at the peak of the 28th anniversary of the National Awakening Party (PKB) on Thursday, July 23, 2026. In his speech, Prabowo said there are Indonesians who enjoy serving and devoting themselves to other nations. "That's what we used to call the black londo, the ones who joined the Dutch in the war against us. These black londos still exist today," Prabowo said at the Jakarta Convention Center, Jakarta, on Thursday evening.
The Gerindra Party Chair then claimed that the group now exists in various forms. "Reporters, journalists, observers, NGOs," Prabowo said.
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