Violence Against Female Journalists in Indonesia: A Threat to Journalism and Freedom of the Press

"Violence against female journalists is a violation of human rights. Some of these acts of violence are even capable of causing deep trauma, as told by many informants in this research."

This report shares the results of research that was conducted to map and identify various forms of both digital and physical violence perpetrated against female journalists in Indonesia. It sought to produce nationally representative data looking at the extent and nature of the violence, the most common sources of violence, and how female journalists are responding to it.

Conducted between August and October 2021 by PR2Media (Pemantau Regulasi dan Regulator Media), the research forms part of their effort to create a more dignified and democratic media ecosystem in Indonesia. The research is intended to inform an educational module and a set of methods for female journalists to help them prevent and overcome violence through training and advocacy. In addition, the findings are meant to serve as the basis for policy and action recommendations for regulators of the press, journalist associations, media company associations, and other stakeholders.

In particular, the research objectives were:

• To identify cases of violence in digital and physical domains experienced by Indonesian female journalists;
• To learn the needs of female journalists for resources (tools and support) to prevent and deal with various cases of violence in the digital and physical domains; and
• To formulate the efforts needed from various stakeholders to respond to cases of violence against Indonesian female journalists.

The research was conducted through a survey (involving 1,256 respondents) and interviews (with six informants) of female journalists from 191 cities, representing western, central, and eastern parts of Indonesia.

The report outlines the research results according to the domain in which the violence takes place - digital or physical. A third section in the report maps the way female journalists respond to the violence at the individual level, the media or journalist organisation level, and the state level.

According to the findings, as many as 1,077 respondents (85.7%) had experienced violence during their journalistic career. Of these, as many as 70.1% had experienced violence in the digital domain, as well as in the physical domain; 7.9% had experienced only violence in the digital domain (online); and 7.8% had experienced only violence in the physical domain (offline). Only 14.3% had never experienced any form of violence at all.

Of all forms of violence in the digital and physical domains (investigated in the survey questionnaire), the form most commonly experienced was offline body-shaming comments (59%), followed by online disturbing/harassing comments of a nonsexual nature (48%), online body-shaming comments (45%), offline threats or harassment of a sexual nature (40%), offline nonsexual threats or harassment (37%), online disturbing/harassing comments of a sexual nature (34%), gender discrimination at work (32%), online misinformation/defamation (28%), online abuses related to ethnicity/religion/race (22%), and physical assaults of a sexual nature (22%).

The research also looked at how journalists acted in response to cases of violence they experienced. Findings showed that most respondents (52%) chose to report the incident to their superiors or co-workers. Another common response was to report to a relevant organisation such as journalist associations (29%) or to file a lawsuit (10%). Other responses were to solve the problem independently, such as through personal confrontation, direct rebuke, discussions, counterattacks, recounting to relatives, and writing articles.

Of the 1,256 respondents, most of the suggestions related to the supporting tools and assistance that can prevent or overcome violence were related to training (40%), followed by the establishment of guidelines or modules on preventing and overcoming violence (29%), legal aid or assistance (23%), and psychological assistance (7%).

In relation to the perpetrators of the violence, in the interviews, all informants (six journalists) said they had experienced sexual violence perpetrated by their sources, both in the digital and physical domains. In the digital domain, journalists said they experienced various forms of sexual violence, from seductive messages to photos of genitalia sent by their sources on WhatsApp. Sexual violence in the physical domain included, for example, having their hair, shoulder, and cheek stroked; being hugged and having their buttocks held; and having their hand touched. Other examples were invitations to meet or interview at a hotel and proposals for marriage as a second or third wife.

For non-sexual violence, the informants said this form of violence occurred mainly because of the reporting being carried out and that their sources perpetrated the violence. This form of violence occurred in both physical and digital domains. For example, three informants had received death threats directly or via telephone and social media platforms. Although the survey data do not show a strong relationship between the acts of violence and the topic of the journalists' reporting, interviews reveal that female journalists are more vulnerable to violence when covering issues considered risky, such as gender and sexuality, and the environment. The latter topic is in line with the statement by the Committee to Protect Journalists, which classifies environmental investigations in developing countries as dangerous, second only to reporting on armed conflicts.

Based on the findings, the research proposes several recommendations that should be carried out in collaboration with various stakeholders: journalists (both female and male), journalist associations or communities, media organisations (including editorial staff and their management), media regulators, associations of media companies, the government, and the wider community, especially news sources. The recommendations are:

1. Conduct various types of training for female journalists so they are better able to prevent or address violence in both digital and physical domains. Considering the various forms of violence, this training needs to address multiple forms of violence faced by journalists. The training should include knowledge (such as related regulations and the concept of protection for journalists and women) and practical skills (such as techniques to avoid violence and steps to address violence when it occurs).
2. Prepare a comprehensive but practical module for the training. That way, not only participating female journalists will benefit, but those who cannot attend the training can use the module as reading material for self-learning.
3. Conduct campaigns on the issue of violence against female journalists, both for various stakeholders and the public in general. These stakeholders include media regulators, journalist associations, associations of media companies, and journalists in general. It is hoped that campaigns will build awareness amongst stakeholders about the high and varied cases of violence against female journalists and that they will highlight the need to create comfortable and safe working conditions for female journalists - through both regulation and non-regulation-related actions.
4. Formulate a standard operating procedure (SOP) to guide female journalists in the event of violence. While the research notes that there are no adequate existing regulations that can protect female journalists from the various types of violence, the Press Council and other stakeholders could formulate a SOP.
5. Make psychological assistance available for female journalists who are victims of violence. Media organisations, journalist associations, associations of media companies, and other organisations could conduct this type of non-regulation related activity.
6. Enhance awareness of the general public, whether they are sources or otherwise, on the need to respect female journalists. The important position of female journalists in a democratic society also needs to be advocated for.
7. Carry out further research on collaborative movements to prevent and address violence against female journalists. Such research is important to see whether the various practical recommendations offered in this report are indeed able to create conditions that are more comfortable and safe (violence-free) for Indonesian female journalists.

Click here for the Indonesian version of this report in PDF format (119 pages).