PFMSea Coalition Condemns Terror Against Tempo Journalist in Indonesia and Calls for Urgent Action to Protect Press Freedom

The PFMSea (Press Freedom Monitoring in Southeast Asia) coalition strongly condemns the escalating acts of terror targeting Tempo and its journalists in Indonesia. The delivery of a severed pig's head, followed by a box containing decapitated rats, represents a grave assault on press freedom and an attempt to silence critical reporting.

The incident began on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, where a courier sent a cardboard box lined with styrofoam containing a pig's head addressed to FCR. The package was received by Tempo's security unit at 16:15 WIB. FCR only received and opened the box on Thursday, March 20, 2025, at 15:00 WIB when she was about to conduct the Tempo “Bocor Alus Politik” podcast. When the box was opened, a very pungent stench was smelled and a pig's head was found in a plastic package with both ears cut off.

Further escalating the terror, Tempo's editorial office received a second shipment in the form of a box containing the carcasses of decapitated rats. Tempo's cleaning staff found the box containing six rats on Saturday, March 22, 2025, at 08:00 WIB.

This action, and the subsequent delivery of dead rats, clearly constitutes a form of intimidation and a symbolic threat of murder against female journalists as well as a threat to the journalistic work carried out by Tempo as a media that is critical and vocal in responding to public issues. Moreover, before the delivery of the rats, on March 21, 2025, Tempo's editorial staff received a threatening message via the Instagram account @derrynoah, stating that he would continue sending terror "until your office dies."

Wahyu Dhyatmika, chief executive of Tempo’s digital team, called the incident an attempt to “scare and silence” the Indonesian press into self-censorship, and confirmed that Tempo lodged a police report on Friday.

"The delivery of a pig’s head is a deliberate act of intimidation aimed at undermining media independence, particularly targeting female journalists. This attack represents an alarming escalation of assaults on press freedom and constitutes a violation of human rights," said Nany Afrida, President of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI).

The PFMSea coalition recognizes that the freedom of the press is a fundamental pillar of democracy. These acts of terror and intimidation against journalists are unacceptable and must be condemned. Therefore, the PFMSea coalition calls upon the Indonesian government to conduct a swift and thorough investigation into these incidents and bring the perpetrators to justice.

We urge all stakeholders to recognize the gravity of this situation and take immediate action to protect press freedom in Indonesia. The PFMSea coalition stands in solidarity with Tempo and all journalists facing threats and intimidation.

Signed by:

• The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia
• Association Journalist Timor Leste (AJTL) 
• Cambodian Journalists Alliance Association (CamboJA)
• Centre for Independent Journalism (CPJ) Malaysia
• Gerakan Media Merdeka (Malaysia)
• National Union of Journalists Philippines (NUJP)
• Prachatai, Thailand.

About PFMSea:

The Press Freedom Monitoring in Southeast Asia (PFMSea) is a consortium of 7 independent press associations and news agencies in six countries – Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Timor Leste, and Thailand – to monitor attacks, threats, or violations committed against journalists, media workers, press institutions, as well as the press freedom situation in the region of Southeast Asia. We publish our findings, which are updated regularly, on https://pfmsea.org/