Environmental Human Rights Defenders (EHRDs) are individuals or groups who peacefully work to protect and promote human rights related to a safe, clean, healthy, and sustainable environment. They are not limited to environmental activists, campaigners, or civil society organizations. EHRDs can be Indigenous Peoples, local communities, fishers, farmers, journalists, academics, students, or any individual acting in a personal or professional capacity to defend environmental rights, including those related to water, air, land, biodiversity, flora, and fauna.
Environmental Human Rights Defenders play a vital role in safeguarding human rights, protecting livelihoods, and ensuring environmental sustainability in Indonesia. Yet throughout 2025, they continued to face an increasingly challenging situation. Criminalization, intimidation, violence, and restrictions on civic space were reported across the country, revealing a significant gap between legal commitments to human rights protection and realities on the ground.
The report, Surging Threats, Diminishing Protection, was jointly prepared by Satya Bumi and Protection International to monitor and analyze the situation of Environmental Human Rights Defenders in Indonesia throughout 2025. The findings show a sharp increase in threats and attacks, rising from 33 documented cases in 2024 to 64 cases in 2025, affecting hundreds of individuals and communities.
This report highlights how these threats are closely linked to development policies that continue to prioritize investment and natural resource extraction, often at the expense of meaningful participation by Indigenous Peoples and local communities. As a result, Environmental Human Rights Defenders face growing legal, social, and physical risks while carrying out their work.
This publication aims to serve as a resource for civil society organizations, academics, journalists, law enforcement institutions, policymakers, and the wider public. By documenting patterns of attacks and emerging trends, the report seeks to contribute to stronger protection mechanisms for Environmental Human Rights Defenders and support policy reforms toward more just, accountable, and sustainable natural resource governance in Indonesia.
