Legal Literacy - How can an emotional sentence in the middle of a demo lead to a verdict of Article 104 of the Criminal Code concerning treason? A critical analysis of the Hermawan Susanto case and the limits of freedom of expression.

Viral in Seconds

The scorching heat stung Jakarta on May 10, 2019. In front of the RI Bawaslu Office, Jalan MH Thamrin, thousands of masses jostled. The smell of sweat, exhaust fumes and shouts of protest mingled into one. In the midst of the commotion stood Hermawan Susanto, a 25-year-old youth from Palmerah, wearing a brown jacket and a black cap.

He did not carry firearms. He did not lead troops. However, one sentence that came out of his mouth that afternoon was enough to change the course of his life forever.

Facing the cell phone camera of an action participant, Hermawan shouted loudly:

“From Poso! Ready to decapitate Jokowi! For Allah, Allahu Akbar! Jokowi is ready for his neck to be decapitated from Poso, for Allah!”

The video was short. Some people around him laughed, considering it part of the euphoria of the demonstration. There was no physical riot at that time. However, in the digital age, the "crime scene" is no longer just an asphalt road, but the virtual world.

That night, social media activist Denny Siregar uploaded the video. Viral was inevitable. Hermawan's face adorned the cell phone screens of millions of Indonesian people. Some were angry, some considered it a joke, but law enforcement officials saw it as a danger signal.