Defense statement that was read by two anarchists who are defendants in last August’s riot case. They are currently awaiting the final verdict and sentencing. The plea has been printed and distributed here in Indonesia on the streets, including outside the court. The statements were also distributed at Homicide and Balcony gig (hardcore bands) in Bandung. Naufal and Adit have projected sentences of 2 years, 6 months, but it has not been confirmed yet by the judge. Adit already received 6 months for being an admin of Black Bloc Zone, he has further trials for burning a police station and for burning the Indonesian flag. Free the prisoners. Palang Hitam.
Pleidoi or defense plea of Naufal
To the Honorable Panel,
First, allow me to defend myself regarding the treatment I received from the police and the prosecutor’s legal assessment of my actions. This is a summary of the ordeal I endured from arrest to the present.
On 4 September 2025 at approximately 11 a.m., about 10 individuals approached me. They interrogated me about my actions, initially stating they would not detain me. After I admitted them, I was forced into a vehicle: my neck was choked, my head struck near the temple, I was handcuffed, and taken to Polda Jabar.
Upon arrival at the Criminal Investigation Building, I was seated on a sofa. I saw my friend Aditya with his head wrapped in duct tape. A person—identified as the Densus 88 commander—approached me, ordered me to stand, and asked, “You’re an anarchist, right?” Before I could answer, he punched my stomach hard, threw me back onto the sofa, and kicked the back of my head four times with his hard sandals. I was forced to stand with hands raised, threatened with further beatings if I lowered them.
Subsequent BAP sessions involved physical and psychological violence: head beatings with sandals, firearm threats, shouting, and intense stares. One session lasted four days and four nights without rest. I tried to correct inaccurate BAP statements—that the Molotov cocktails wrapped with firecrackers failed to ignite or cause damage, only breaking the bottles—but received threats like “If I’d seen you at the demo, I’d have killed you,” accompanied by pistol display and sandal strikes to my head.
I view this treatment and the mismatched BAP records as coercion—physical, mental, and psychological. I signed under duress.
During the trial, several irregularities stand out:
– The indictment is inaccurate: the six Molotov cocktails I threw at the DPRD gate DID NOT IGNITE, BURN, OR EXPLODE. I only targeted the gate.
– Arrest witnesses falsely claimed no violence occurred, despite the beatings I suffered, and provided incomplete, inaccurate evidence.
– They listed seized items as an iPhone, trousers, and shoes. In reality: Xiaomi Mi A1 (black), dark blue jeans, black-and-white Vans shoes, a Master CD (missing), stickers (pasted in the investigator’s room), and a transparent phone case (missing).
The events of 29 August 2025 were an outburst of distress, anger, and resentment toward a government that responded brutally to DPRD allowance increases, Affan’s death under police armored vehicle, similar cases involving Randi, Yusuf, Gama, the Kanjuruhan tragedy (135+ lives lost), and forced evictions in Bara Baraya, Dago Elos, Taman Sari, Sukahaji, and elsewhere.
From arrest to unreasonable demands, justice has never favored people like me and my friends.
If justice truly exists, I demand the fairest possible outcome. Whether acknowledged or dismissed as mere words in this courtroom, I ask: Why is damage to state property deemed more important than the taking of a human life?
In closing, I do not regret my actions—shared by all who participated amid the same distress and suffering. What I regret is the loss of freedom, happiness, personal space, time with family, and the disruption to my efforts to support my family’s livelihood.
Respectfully,
Mochamad Naufal Taufiqurahman