Press Council Still Studying the Indonesia-US Trade Agreement
The Indonesian Press Council is preparing to issue a statement regarding the impact of the trade agreement between Indonesia and the United States on the media industry. The council, which oversees dozens of press organisations in Indonesia, discussed the stance they would take in a closed meeting on Thursday afternoon, 26 February 2026.
Deputy Chairman of the Press Council, Totok Suryanto, said that today’s meeting gathered thoughts and opinions from leaders of journalist organisations regarding the impact of the provisions of the Agreement on Reciprocal Trade.
“What was discussed today was a kind of thought or anticipation of the possibilities that we must face if it is indeed implemented,” said Totok at the Press Council office in Jakarta on Thursday.
According to a Tempo report, the Press Council meeting on 24 February identified Article 3.3 in the ART as a problematic provision. The Publisher Rights Committee believes that the article no longer regulates the obligation of US-based digital platforms to support the domestic press industry, including through paid licensing schemes and revenue sharing.
According to the ART document, Article 3.3 states that Indonesia must communicate with the United States before entering into new digital trade agreements with other countries that are deemed to harm US interests. In its explanation, Indonesia is not allowed to require US digital service providers to support domestic news organisations through paid licenses, data sharing, or revenue-sharing models.
However, Totok did not confirm that the Press Council would reject the contents of the agreement and ask the government to revise the agreement between the two countries. He said that the Press Council is still waiting for a complete explanation from the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs as the government’s representative. The Press Council and representatives from the Coordinating Ministry of Economic Affairs are scheduled to discuss and break fast together on Friday, 27 February 2026.
Totok explained that Indonesia has Presidential Regulation Number 32 of 2024 concerning the Responsibility of Digital Platform Companies to Support Quality Journalism or Publisher Rights. This regulation allows media companies to negotiate with digital platforms in order to obtain the rights they have because media content and products are commercialised.
Totok hopes that the government will prioritise the interests of the national press so that when signing policies, it truly supports the press industry. This is because, according to Totok, the media industry is currently experiencing disruption, especially in terms of its business sustainability.
“We have seen that so many press companies have closed down, laid off their journalists, which is a sad situation because at a time when our democracy is growing,” he said.