According to a research by the Indonesian Centre for Statistics (BPS), Papua and Papua Barat are the provinces with the lowest democracy index in Indonesia. The province of Papua Barat only reached an index of 57,62 in 2019. The score even decreased in comparison to the previous year, in which the democracy index was calculated at 58.29. Papua Barat is the only province in Indonesia where the democracy index remains below 60, which the BPS categorized as ‘bad democracy’. The province of Papua reached the penultimate place with a democracy index of 65.25, categorized as ‘moderate democracy’. Both provinces are still far below the national average of 74.93 points. The highest index was reached in Indonesia’s capital Jakarta with a score of 88.29 points.
The democracy index is calculated based on three major aspects, each consisting of multiple indicators. Moreover, the statistics include eleven variables and 28 indicators to determine the index. The first aspect is covered by civil freedoms, such as the freedom of assembly and association, freedom of speech, freedom of belief and non-discrimination. The second aspect focuses on political rights e.g. the political participation in decision-making processes or the right to vote and be elected. The third category observes the role of democratic institutions. It takes into consideration the independence of courts, the role of the provincial parliament and political parties.
The BPS identified nine indicators which had a negative impact on Papua’s low democracy index in 2019:
|
No |
Indicator |
Index |
Aspect |
|
1 |
Threats of violence or the use of force by government officials that hinder freedom of expression |
54.17 |
Civil Freedoms Aspect |
|
2 |
Violent demonstrations or strikes |
0.00 |
Civil Freedoms Aspect |
|
3 |
Quality of the final voters’ list (DPT) |
52.86 |
Political Rights Aspect |
|
4 |
Regeneration activities carried out by political parties participating in the elections |
0.00 |
Political Rights Aspect |
|
5 |
Representation of women in the provincial parliament |
48.50 |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
6 |
Public complaints regarding governance |
59.68 |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
7 |
Recommendations by the local parliament (DPRD) to the executive |
3.57 |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
8 |
Efforts to provide information on regional government expenditure budget (APBD) |
25.00 |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
9 |
Percentage of regional regulations derived from local parliaments’ (DPRD) initiative rights |
0.00 |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
In 2018, the BPS identified eleven indicators in the province of Papua Barat for which the score remained below 60 (categorized as ‘bad’). Detailed figures for the Province of Papua Barat from 2019 have not been made available:
|
No |
Indicator |
Aspect |
|
1 |
Threats of violence or the use of force by government officials that hinder freedom of expression |
Civil Freedoms Aspect |
|
2 |
Threats of violence or the use of force by civil society actors that hinder freedom of expression |
Civil Freedoms Aspect |
|
3 |
Violent demonstrations or strikes |
Civil Freedoms Aspect |
|
4 |
Quality of the final voters’ list (DPT) |
Political Rights Aspect |
|
5 |
Regeneration activities carried out by political parties participating in the elections |
Political Rights Aspect |
|
6 |
Representation of women in the provincial parliament |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
7 |
Public complaints regarding governance |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
|
Efforts to provide information on regional government expenditure budget (APBD) |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
9 |
Recommendations by the local parliament (DPRD) to the executive |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
10 |
Percentage of regional regulations derived from local parliaments’ (DPRD) initiative rights |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
|
11 |
Allocation of health and education budget in regional government expenditure budget (APBD) |
Democratic Institutions Aspect |
