Data from the Indonesian Press Council, processed by the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS), reveals fluctuations in Indonesia's Press Freedom Index (IKP) score from 2018 to 2024.
The BPS states that this index can be used to assess press freedom in the country.
In 2018, the score was 69 out of 100 points. Over the next four years, it consistently increased.
Specifically, it reached 73.71 in 2019; 75.27 in 2020; 76.02 in 2021; and 77.88 in 2022.
Then, the score dropped to 71.57 in 2023 and 69.36 in 2024, a decrease of 2.21 points in 2024.
"This represents a consecutive decline over the past two years," wrote the BPS in its *2024 Political Statistics* report published on Monday, December 16, 2024.
The 2024 score categorizes Indonesia's press freedom as "fairly free."
The BPS also notes that the highest provincial IKP score was achieved by South Kalimantan with a value of 80.91, making it the only province in Indonesia to achieve the "free" category. This was followed by East Kalimantan (79.96) and Central Kalimantan (79.58).
Meanwhile, the provinces with the lowest IKP scores were Lampung (62.04) and Papua (65.6).
According to the Press Council's website, the IKP comprises three constituent indices: the economic environment (with the lowest score of 67.74); the physical and political environment (70.06); and the legal environment (69.44).
The National IKP score is calculated from the average IKP of 38 provinces (weighted at 70%), plus the IKP of the National Assessment Council (NAC) (weighted at 30%).
Provincial IKP results were higher than the NAC IKP (71.64 vs. 64.04). The Press Council states that this is why the national IKP score is slightly lower than the provincial IKP.
(See also: 45% of Indonesian Journalists Experienced Violence in 2023: Intimidation to Murder Threats)