Indonesia has become a populist authoritarian country since Jokowi’s second period

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – PDI-Perjuangan (Sekjen) Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto believes that Indonesia has become a populist and authoritarian country since the second period of President Joko Widodo’s (Jokowi) administration.

According to Hasto, this change was marked by a shift in Indonesian democratic practices that were originally based on political and economic democracy as contained in the values ​​of Pancasila.

“We deeply regret that political and economic democracy, which was considered the basic substance of Indonesian democracy, has now transformed into a centralized democracy,” Hasto said in his speech while leading the Pancasila anniversary commemoration ceremony at the PDI-P Party School, Jakarta, Monday (1/6/2026).

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“Especially during the second term of the president JokowiIndonesia has become a country authoritarian which is populist,” he continued.

On this occasion, Hasto also criticized the situation of the police, which he considers increasingly submissive to power. According to him, the law which should give priority to justice has lost its independence.

“The judiciary, which should prioritize justice, has changed its nature to submit to power,” Hasto said.

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He even accused law enforcement officials and the state apparatus of being used to serve the political interests of those in power.

“Even law enforcement and the entire state apparatus have been reduced to being tools of electoral mobilization and protectors of the ruling elite. This is what happened in the 2024 elections,” he said.

Therefore, Hasto said that the PDI-P had already apologized to the public at the party’s National Working Meeting (Rakernas) forum.

“So, at the national working meeting, PDI Perjuangan apologized to all the Indonesian people for the change in the nature of power due to the ambition of power,” he said.

In addition, Hasto also highlighted various cases which he called political and legal criminalization. According to him, this condition shows the importance of the rule of law as the main foundation of the life of the State.

“When various cases of political and legal criminalization occurred, it gave rise to a very strong criticism that without the supremacy of law, there would be no strong political construction, and there would be no construction of an economic system capable of growing and developing for prosperity,” Hasto said.

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He stressed that a just legal system is the main necessary condition for respect for human values, people and social justice.

“A fair legal system is the basic foundation. Without it, there will be no respect for humanity, people and justice. Without fair laws, everything becomes costly and full of uncertainty,” Hasto concluded.

Jokowi once commented on the notion of authoritarianism

During his second term in 2021, Jokowi once commented on the idea that he was authoritarian.

At that time, BEM UI declared Jokowi as “Tthe king of words“.

“Yes, this has been going on for a long time, in the past there were people who said that I was a klemar-klemer, there were also some who said that I was a plonga-plongo, then there were those who said that I was an authoritarian,” he said in a statement to the press via YouTube of the Presidential Secretariat, Tuesday (29/6/2021).

According to him, in a democratic country, it is possible to criticize.

“And there’s nothing wrong with universities, there’s no need to stop students from speaking out.” But also remember that we have a culture of etiquette, a culture of politeness,” Jokowi said.

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