Indonesia Denies Asking Social Media Platforms to Remove Forest Fire Content

JAKARTA, HOLOPIS.COM – Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs has denied requesting that digital platforms remove content related to forest and land fires, following controversy over the temporary removal of a video posted by Siak Regent Afni Zulkifli about tree planting on land previously affected by fires.

Communications and Digital Affairs Minister Meutya Viada Hafid said the ministry understood the public concern surrounding the incident and had taken note of the issue.

“The Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs has provided an initial explanation through our team, and we are reiterating that there has been no content removal or request from the ministry to remove content to restrict information about forest and land fires,” Meutya said, reported by Holopis.com, Thursday (22/10).

She emphasized that information about forest and land fires is important to the government, both to support firefighting efforts and to help shape strategies for addressing the disaster.

According to Meutya, the government has also expanded the dissemination of information about forest and land fires through its official social media channels as part of its public communication efforts.

“The government welcomes factual, credible and accountable information regarding forest and land fires,” she said.

Ministry Calls for Greater Transparency in Platform Algorithms

Beyond denying any request to remove content, Meutya raised concerns about the possibility of information being restricted through digital platforms’ Community Guidelines and algorithmic systems.

She said the ministry continues to push for greater accountability and transparency in technology companies’ algorithms to ensure that the distribution of information on social media is not determined solely by platforms themselves.

“What we see and consume on social media should be a user’s right as a consumer to choose, rather than being controlled unilaterally by technology companies,” she said.

According to Meutya, platform transparency is necessary to help the public understand how content is processed, moderated and distributed to users.

Her remarks underscore the need for transparent mechanisms to address disputes over the moderation of forest fire-related content, including clear explanations when posts are removed or their reach is restricted.

Public Urged to Appeal Content Restrictions

Meutya also urged members of the public who believe their forest fire-related posts have been improperly restricted to use the complaint mechanisms available on the relevant platforms.

“If anyone believes their forest fire-related posts have experienced service disruptions on platforms such as Meta, TikTok or others, they should file a complaint or appeal with the relevant platform and also report it to us,” she said.

She said users could challenge removals or restrictions directly with platforms, including TikTok and Meta, if they believed their content had been unfairly targeted.

They could also report the cases to the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs for follow-up within its authority.

Siak Regent’s Video Restored After Appeal

The controversy began after a video posted by Siak Regent Afni Zulkifli showing tree-planting activities on land previously affected by forest and land fires was temporarily removed by TikTok despite having received millions of views.