The Constitutionality of Restrictions on Freedom of Expression in Pancasila Democracy: A Human Rights Perspective
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15294/ijpgc.v3i1.48120Keywords:
Freedom of expression, Pancasila democracy, constitutional limitations, human rights law, three-part testAbstract
Freedom of expression constitutes a fundamental pillar of democratic governance, yet its exercise increasingly faces restrictions in Indonesia within the framework of Pancasila democracy. While international human rights law recognizes freedom of expression as a derogable right subject to strict conditions, the use of Pancasila as a basis for restricting this freedom often lacks clear operational parameters. This paper analyzes the constitutionality of restrictions on freedom of expression in Indonesia by examining their conformity with international human rights standards, particularly the three-part test. This study employs a normative legal research method, drawing on statutory, conceptual, and comparative approaches, as well as secondary data from legislation, court decisions, international human rights instruments, and academic literature. The findings indicate that although Indonesia formally adopts the principles of legality, legitimate aim, and necessity-proportionality, their implementation remains inconsistent due to vague legal norms and the abstract deployment of Pancasila as a justificatory framework. As a result, certain restrictions risk exceeding permissible limits and undermining democratic values. This research contributes by proposing an integrative analytical model that positions Pancasila as a normative lens within the three-part test framework, thereby bridging universal human rights standards with national ideological values. It concludes that restrictions on freedom of expression in Pancasila democracy can only be considered constitutional when they satisfy both international standards and clearly operationalized Pancasila values.
References
Aditya, Zaka Firma, and Sholahuddin Al-Fatih. “Freedom of Expression vs Political Stability: Legal Interpretation of Commotion in Social Media After the Issuing of a Constitutional Court Decision.” Jurnal Jurisprudence 15, no. 2 (2025): 60–77. https://doi.org/10.23917/jurisprudence.v15i2.10648.
Afful-Dadzie, Eric, and Anthony Afful-Dadzie. “Liberation of Public Data: Exploring Central Themes in Open Government Data and Freedom of Information Research.” International Journal of Information Management 37, no. 6 (2017): 664–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2017.05.009.
Alsharif, Mohammad, and Hussein Hnit. “Digital Human Rights: Legal Debates and Emerging Foundations under the International Bill of Human Rights.” Social Sciences & Humanities Open 12 (2025).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.102160.
Amnesty International. Situasi Hak Asasi Manusia Di Dunia. 2026. https://www.amnesty.id/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/041726_AIR-Bahasa-Indonesia_FIN.pdf.
Anggraeni, Andini Eka, Hifzani Maulida, Zalfaa Pramesty Ardana, Zunatul Mafrucha, and Dewi Sulistianingsih. “The Role of Students in Developing Democratic Awareness: Implementation Fourth Principle of Pancasila.” Indonesian Journal of Pancasila and Global Constitutionalism 4, no. 1 (March 2026): 74–96. https://doi.org/10.15294/ijpgc.v4i1.36575.
Ashri, Muhammad, and Abdul Munif Ashri. Hak Asasi Manusia: Filosofi, Teori, Dan Instrumen Dasar (Edisi Revisi). Jakarta: Kencana, 2025.
Balkin, Jack. “The Future of Free Expression in a Digital Age.” Pepperdine Law Review 36, no. 2 (2012). https://digitalcommons.pepperdine.edu/plr/vol36/iss2/9.
Barendt, Eric. “Freedom of Expression in the United Kingdom Under the Human Rights Act 1998.” 84 Indiana Law Journal 851 (2009) 84, no. 3 (2009). https://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/vol84/iss3/4.
———. Freedom of Speech. 2nd ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2005.
Blasi, Vincent. “Is John Stuart Mill’s On Liberty Obsolete?” Daedalus 153, no. 3 (2024): 14–30.
Bollinger, Lee C., and Agnès Callamard, eds. Regardless of Frontiers: Global Freedom of Expression in a Troubled World. New York: Columbia University Press, 2021.
Burchardt, Dana. “The Functions of Law and Their Challenges: The Differentiated Functionality of International Law.” German Law Journal 20, no. 4 (2019): 409–29. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2019.29.
Ceballos, Haydeé, Theo Van Den Bogaart, Stan Van Ginkel, Jeroen Spandaw, and Paul Drijvers. “How Collaborative Problem Solving Promotes Higher-Order Thinking Skills: A Systematic Review of Design Features and Processes.” Thinking Skills and Creativity 59 (2026): 102001.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsc.2025.102001.
De Villiers, Bertus, Saldi Isra, and Pan Mohamad Faiz. Courts and Diversity: Twenty Years of the Constitutional Court of Indonesia. Leiden: Brill, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004691698.
Donaldson, Connor. “Militant Moralism: The Hegemonic Consequences of German Content Moderation.” German Law Journal 25, no. 3 (2024): 497–513. https://doi.org/10.1017/glj.2024.18.
Donnelly, Jack. “Cultural Relativism and Universal Human Rights.” Human Rights Quarterly 6, no. 4 (1984): 400. https://doi.org/10.2307/762182.
———. Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice. 2. ed. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 2003.
Dworkin, Ronald. “A New Map of Censorship.” Index on Censorship 23, nos. 1–2 (1994): 9–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/03064229408535633.
———. Freedom’s Law: The Moral Reading of the American Constitution. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1996.
Elfadl, Asma, Sameha Alshakhsi, Raian Ali, and Ala Yankouskaya. “Revisiting Preferences for Communication Styles in Computer-Mediated Communication: A Study amongst UK and Arab Samples.” Telematics and Informatics Reports 20 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.teler.2025.100263.
Ellandra, Athallah Zahran, Muhammad Faqih, and Kemal Azizi. “Status Quo Pengaturan Pasal Penghinaan Presiden Sebagai Pembatas Hak Konstitusional Terkait Kebebasan Berpendapat Di Indonesia Beserta Potensi Pengaturannya Di Masa Depan: Studi Kasus Penghinaan Presiden Di Media Sosial (Kasus Ruslan Buton).” Jurnal Studia Legalia 3, no. 01 (2022): 1–12. https://doi.org/10.61084/jsl.v3i01.20.
Esfandiari, Fitria, and Aan Eko Widianto. “Pancasila Legal System: Balancing The Fulfillment Of National Moral Values And Law Enforcement In Indonesia.” Indonesian Journal of Law and Economics Review 19, no. 1 (2024). https://doi.org/10.21070/ijler.v19i1.999.
Fadhil, Moh. “Criminal Law Reform in Indonesia : The Perspective on Freedom of Expression and Opinion.” Al-Jinayah Jurnal Hukum Pidana Islam 9, no. 2 (2023): 128–46. https://doi.org/10.15642/aj.2023.9.2.128-146.
Fidiyani, Rini, Dewi Sulistianingsih, and Pujiono Pujiono. “Law and Ethics of Communication in Social Media.” Jurnal Dinamika Hukum 17, no. 3 (2017): 258–65. https://doi.org/10.20884/1.jdh.2017.17.3.1665.
Fiedler, Anke, and James Morrison. “How Different Models of Media Regulation Address Social Inequality: A Qualitative Textual Analysis of Key Media Regulation Texts from Germany and the United Kingdom.” Javnost - The Public 32, no. 4 (2025): 435–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/13183222.2025.2579387.
Freedom House. “Indonesia: Freedom in the World 2025 Country Report.” Freedom House, 2025. https://freedomhouse.org/country/indonesia/freedom-world/2025.
Gallagher, Fiona Mae. “Revisiting the Principle of Ultimum Remedium in Criminal Law Reform: A Human Rights Perspective on the Indonesian New Penal Code.” Vifada Assumption Journal of Law 3, no. 1 (2025): 29–39. https://doi.org/10.70184/fgh25n48.
Giuranno, Michele Giuseppe, and Mauro Sebastian Manni. “The Impact of TikTok on Elections: (Mis)Information and Regulatory Challenges.” Kyklos, ahead of print, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1111/kykl.70054.
Goncalves, J. E., G. Slingerland, S. Sarabi, and G. Dane. “Process First, Tools Second: A Conceptual Framework to Embed Digital Participation in Planning Processes for Citizen Empowerment.” Cities 170 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2025.106645.
Habermas, Jürgen. The Structural Transformation of the Public Sphere: An Inquiry into a Category of Bourgeois Society. 1. publ. in paperback, Repr. Cambridge: Polity, 2011.
Haggart, Blayne, and Clara Iglesias Keller. “Democratic Legitimacy in Global Platform Governance.” Telecommunications Policy 45, no. 6 (2021): 102152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2021.102152.
Hailbronner, Michaela, and Stefan Martini. “The German Federal Constitutional Court.” In Comparative Constitutional Reasoning, 1st ed., edited by András Jakab, Arthur Dyevre, and Giulio Itzcovich, 356–93. Cambridge University Press, 2017. https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316084281.012.
Handayani, Emi Puasa, Zainal Arifin, and Zico Junius Fernando. “Criminal Penalties in Cyberspace: Between the Development of Digital Democracy and Authoritarianism.” Indonesian Journal of Criminal Law Studies 10, no. 1 (2025): 45–82. https://doi.org/10.15294/ijcls.v10i1.19652.
Hasani, Ismail, and Halili Halili. “Human Rights and Constitutionality Issues of Blasphemy Law in Indonesia.” Jurnal Konstitusi 19, no. 2 (2022): 406. https://doi.org/10.31078/jk1927.
Helm, Rebecca K., and Hitoshi Nasu. “Regulatory Responses to ‘Fake News’ and Freedom of Expression: Normative and Empirical Evaluation.” Human Rights Law Review 21, no. 2 (2021): 302–28. https://doi.org/10.1093/hrlr/ngaa060.
Hovik, Sissel, Sveinung Legard, and Inger Miriam Bertelsen. “Area-Based Initiatives and Urban Democracy.” Cities 144 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2023.104638.
Hsb, Mara Ongku. “HAM DAN Kebebasan Berpendapat dalam UUD 1945.” AL WASATH Jurnal Ilmu Hukum 2, no. 1 (2021): 29–40. https://doi.org/10.47776/alwasath.v2i1.135.
Indriasari, Devi Tri, and Karman Karman. “Freedom of Expression in Regulatory Pressure: Case Study on the Electronic Information and Transaction Law.” Jurnal The Messenger 15, no. 1 (2024): 34–51. https://doi.org/10.26623/themessenger.v15i1.5787.
Iskandar, Pranoto. “The Pancasila Delusion.” Journal of Contemporary Asia 46, no. 4 (2016): 723–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/00472336.2016.1195430.
Junius Fernando, Zico, Pujiyono, Umi Rozah, and Nur Rochaeti. “The Freedom of Expression in Indonesia.” Cogent Social Sciences 8, no. 1 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1080/23311886.2022.2103944.
Kapelańska-Pręgowska, Julia, and Maja Pucelj. “Freedom of Expression and Hate Speech: Human Rights Standards and Their Application in Poland and Slovenia.” Laws 12, no. 4 (2023): 64. https://doi.org/10.3390/laws12040064.
Karim, Zahlul Pasha, and Abdul Jalil Salam. “Repression of Academic Freedom in Colleges: An Alternative Perspective on the ICSECR.” Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights 9, no. 2 (2025). https://doi.org/10.19184/jseahr.v9i2.45109.
Kohl, Uta. “Towards a Regulatory Theory Of Platform Rule: Corporate ‘Sovereignty’ Through Immunities.” St. Mary’s Law Journal 56, no. 3 (2025): 465–552.
Listiyani, Nurul, and Yholanda Christiyana. “Comparison of The Provisions On Freedom of Expression On Social Media From A Human Rights Perspective And Law Number 19 of 2016 Concerning Information And Electronic Transactions In Indonesia.” International Journal of Educational Research & Social Sciences 6, no. 4 (2025): 475–80. https://doi.org/10.51601/ijersc.v6i4.998.
Martitah, Martitah. “Reactualization of the Pancasila Ideology in the Spirit of Moral Law Formation.” Law Research Review Quarterly 2, no. 1 (2016): 79–92. https://doi.org/10.15294/snh.v2i01.21404.
Martitah, Martitah, Dewi Sulistianingsih, Arini Salsabila, Ayuk Anggeraeni, and Dewi Fatmawati. “Legal Certainty and Social Security: Two Main Pillars of the LLAJ Bill for the Future of Online Motorcycle Taxi Drivers.” The Indonesian Journal of International Clinical Legal Education 7, no. 4 (2025): 563–94. https://doi.org/10.15294/ijicle.v7i4.38645.
Mill, John Stuart. On Liberty. Union, N.J: Lawbook Exchange, 2002.
Morrell, Sara. “Why (Not) Talk about Human Rights? Politics in the Global Digital Compact.” Telecommunications Policy 49, no. 10 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2025.103077.
Muhammad, Raihan. “Peranan dan Problematika Mahkamah Konstitusi Sebagai Positive Legislature di Tengah Regresi Demokrasi Indonesia.” Lex Renaissance 10, no. 1 (2025): 65–93. https://doi.org/10.20885/JLR.vol10.iss1.art3.
Murray, Daragh, and Pete Fussey. “Bulk Surveillance in the Digital Age: Rethinking the Human Rights Law Approach to Bulk Monitoring of Communications Data.” Israel Law Review 52, no. 1 (2019): 31–60. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0021223718000304.
Ncube, Swikani. “Human Rights Enforcement in Africa: Enhancing the Pan-African Parliament’s Capacity to Promote and Protect Human Rights.” African Human Rights Law Journal 22, no. 2 (2023): 1–22. https://doi.org/10.17159/1996-2096/2020/v20n1a4.
Network Enforcement Act [Netzwerkdurchsetzungsgesetz]. “NetzDG - Gesetz Zur Verbesserung Der Rechtsdurchsetzung in Sozialen Netzwerken.” 2017. https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/netzdg/BJNR335210017.html.
Nowak, Manfred. Pengantar Pada Rezim HAM Internasional. Translated by Sri Sulastini. Jakarta: Pustaka Hak Asasi Manusia Raoul Wallenberg Institute, 2003.
Nurbayani, Siti, Elly Malihah, Millary Agung Widiawaty, Moh. Dede, Bayu Iqbal Anshari, Asep Mahpudz, Erry Sukriah, and Sri Wahyuni. “Freedom of Expression, Aspiration and Gender: A Cultuling in the Student Demonstration.” Social Sciences & Humanities Open 11 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2024.101267.
Orchard-Webb, Johanne, Jasper O. Kenter, Ros Bryce, and Andrew Church. “Deliberative Democratic Monetary Valuation to Implement the Ecosystem Approach.” Ecosystem Services 21 (2016): 308–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoser.2016.09.005.
Putri, Fadiza Amalia, and M. Rizki Yudha Prawira. “Criminal Act of Attack on Honor Following the Constitutional Court Decision No. 105/PUU-XXII/2024: Human Rights Perspective.” Jurnal Daulat Hukum 8, no. 4 (2025): 654–76. https://doi.org/10.30659/jdh.v8i4.49048.
Muhammad, Raihan. “Peranan dan Problematika Mahkamah Konstitusi sebagai Positive Legislature di Tengah Regresi Demokrasi Indonesia.” Lex Renaissance 10, no. 1 (2025): 65–93. https://doi.org/10.20885/JLR.vol10.iss1.art3
Ramachandran, Niroshan, and Matthew Wright. “Framing and the Mechanisms of Criminalisation in the Migration Context.” International Review of Sociology, January 14, 2026, 1–30. https://doi.org/10.1080/03906701.2026.2614010.
Sadhana, Gaikwad, and Research Supervisor: Dr Rajvardhan. “The Study of Right to Freedom of Expression, Digital Media Laws and Demand for Innovation.” Law and World 11, no. 33 (March 2025): 114–24. https://doi.org/10.36475/11.1.9.
Saparina, Amalya Salsa, and Dinie Anggraeni Dewi. “Implementasi Nilai-Nilai Pancasila Melalui Praktik Kebebasan Berpendapat Di Indonesia.” Jurpis: Jurnal Pendidikan Ilmu Sosial 18, no. 1 (2021): 49–62.
Scalpello, Michela. “Malta: The Use of Ambiguity for Corruption and (Mis)Rule of Law.” Journal of Economic Criminology 5 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jeconc.2024.100088.
Schauer, Frederick F. Free Speech: A Philosophical Enquiry. Cambridge [Cambridgeshire] ; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1982.
Sircar, Neiloy R., Safura Abdool Karim, Lisa Forman, and Benjamin Mason Meier. “Human Rights Limitations in Global Health Law Reforms.” Public Health 250 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2025.106081.
Sonkar, Aman. “Sedition Recast: Analysing Section 150 of the BNS in Light of the Right to Free Speech.” Social Sciences & Humanities Open 13 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.102276.
Stanny Terianus Rumaseb, Ulul Albab, and Sarwani Sarwani. “A Systematic Literature Review On The Protection And Promotion Of Human Rights In Indonesia.” Kajian Administrasi Publik Dan Ilmu Komunikasi 2, no. 3 (2025): 172–90. https://doi.org/10.62383/kajian.v2i3.570.
Steiner, Henry J., Philip Alston, and Ryan Goodman. International Human Rights in Context: Law, Politics, Morals. 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008.
Stone Sweet, Alec, and Jud Mathews. Proportionality Balancing and Global Constitutionalism. 47, no. 1 (2008). http://hub.hku.hk/handle/10722/300158.
Sukriono, Didik, Sudirman Sudirman, Desinta Dwi Rapita, A. Rosyid Al Atok, and Alfan Bramantya. “Local Wisdom as Legal Dispute Settlement: How Indonesia’s Communities Acknowledge Alternative Dispute Resolution?” Legality : Jurnal Ilmiah Hukum 33, no. 1 (2025): 261–85.
https://doi.org/10.22219/ljih.v33i1.39958.
Sunstein, Cass. “Does the Clear and Present Danger Test Survive Cost-Benefit Analysis?” Cornell Law Review 104, no. 7 (2019): 1775–97.
Syahwal, and Raihan Muhammad. “Asian Values Discourses and Its Impact on Freedom of Expression in Social Media.” The Indonesian Journal of International Clinical Legal Education 7, no. 3 (2025): 343–98. https://doi.org/10.15294/iccle.v7i3.26869.
Tan, Netina. “Electoral Management of Digital Campaigns and Disinformation in East and Southeast Asia.” Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy 19, no. 2 (2020): 214–39. https://doi.org/10.1089/elj.2019.0599.
Teo, Kai Xiang. “Civil Society Responses to Singapore’s Online ‘Fake News’ Law.” International Journal of Communication 15 (2021): 21–21.
Teo, Sue Anne. “How to Think about Freedom of Thought (and Opinion) in the Age of AI.” Computer Law & Security Review 53 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.clsr.2024.105969.
Townley, Chris, and Christel Koop. “Exploring the Potential and Limits of Digital Tools for Inclusive Regulatory Engagement with Citizens.” Government Information Quarterly 41, no. 1 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.giq.2023.101901.
Triwahyuningsih, Triwahyuningsih. “The Right to Freedom of Express Opinions in Public Based on Pancasila.” Journal of Transcendental Law 3, no. 1 (2021): 1–14. https://doi.org/10.23917/jtl.v3i1.15682.
Van Der Puil, Roxanne, Andreas Spahn, and Lambèr Royakkers. “Which Democratic Way to Go?: Using Democracy Theories in Social Media Design.” International Journal of Technoethics 14, no. 1 (2023): 1–20. https://doi.org/10.4018/IJT.331800.
Vickery, Jamie. “Using an Intersectional Approach to Advance Understanding of Homeless Persons’ Vulnerability to Disaster.” Environmental Sociology 4, no. 1 (2018): 136–47. https://doi.org/10.1080/23251042.2017.1408549.
Voerman-Tam, Diana, Arthur Grimes, and Nicholas Watson. “The Economics of Free Speech: Subjective Wellbeing and Empowerment of Marginalized Citizens.” Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization 212 (2023): 260–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jebo.2023.05.047.
Zafar, Ammar. “Protectionism, Power, and the Erosion of WTO Discipline: Legal and Economic Lessons from the Trade Wars.” Social Sciences & Humanities Open 12 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2025.101983.
Zahrah, Fatimatuz, and Siti Maizul Habibah. “Freedom Of Speech and Human Rights: What Can Civic Education Do?” Jurnal HAM 13, no. 3 (2022): 495. https://doi.org/10.30641/ham.2022.13.495-508.
Zakharin, Michael, and Timothy C. Bates. “Psychological Pillars of Support for Free Speech: Tolerance for Offensive, Disagreeing, Socially Divisive, and Heterodox Speech.” Personality and Individual Differences 219 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2023.112502.
Downloads
Published
Article ID
48120Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 Raihan Muhammad (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
