Breaking News: Police close and cancel civil society conference on the sidelines of #IMF & #WorldBank annual meeting in Bali, #Indonesia (#IMFWBMeetingBali ). Statement: https://t.co/uPcAMqivzI pic.twitter.com/LiXECR780m
— CIVICUS (@CIVICUSalliance) October 11, 2018
Responding to the decision by the Indonesian police to remove permission for the "Peoples' Global Conference against IMF-WB" at the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank's annual meeting this week in Bali, Indonesia:
“At a time when the space for civil society and alternative voices is shrinking around the world, it is disgraceful that Indonesia, which prides itself as a champion of democracy, has decided to take such action. CIVICUS, the global civil society alliance, calls on the Indonesian authorities to immediately review their arbitrary decision to cancel the conference and allow the event to take place. Authorities must also investigate allegations of intimidation and surveillance of the event organisers.”
“The space for critical debate in Indonesia is receding by the day with restrictions on peaceful gatherings, the arrest of activists for peaceful protests and human rights defenders facing various risks in undertaking their work. CIVICUS calls on authorities to halt these draconian actions and instead create an enabling environment for activists and civil society to engage as well as critique the government and other actors including international financial institutions.”
Background
An alternative conference on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank's annual meeting this week in Indonesia has been cancelled due to pressure from the police. The planned event -- the "Peoples' Global Conference against IMF-WB" -was set to kick off on 11 October 2018. The alternative conference, involving around 300 participants from Indonesia and around the world, was to bring together dozens of civil society groups to draw attention to the impact of free trade and IMF-WB backed policies that critics say aggravate income inequality, abuse labor rights and harm the environment.
Civil society has long called for international financial institutions to integrate civic space concerns into their work and in any country specific development projects supported or initiated by them.
According to reports, police intelligence personnel had infiltrated the event planning team as volunteers, subjecting them to intimidation and constant surveillance. The organisers are looking for an alternate venue and are in negotiations with police in Bali.
Josef Benedict, CIVICUS civic space research officer (josef.benedict[at]civicus.org, twitter @josefroy2):
For more information on civic space in Indonesia visit their country page on the CIVICUS Monitor. The state of civil liberties in Indonesia is currently rated as Obstructed.