The proposal in the House of Representatives for the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) to establish a special body to counter “misleading narratives” on social media may appear, at first glance, to be a pragmatic response to the flood of disinformation. Yet the term “misleading narratives” is so elastic, so infinitely interpretable, that creating a state institution dedicated to policing it risks dragging Indonesia toward a model of managed democracy — a system in which the state not only governs but curates truth itself. To subscribe please click here
