Minister Meutya Hafid Requests Public to Appeal if Karhutla Content is Taken Down

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs (Menkomdigi) Meutya Hafid has urged the public to report if content related to forest and land fires (karhutla) is taken down from digital platforms.

"If anyone feels that their posting related to karhutla is affected by disruptions on platforms such as Meta, TikTok, or other platforms, submit an appeal to the relevant platform, and also report it to us," Meutya stated in a press release received by Kompas.com on Wednesday (21/10/2026).

Meutya emphasized that the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs is actually pushing for accountability and transparency from platform algorithms rather than restricting information on karhutla.

 "What we see and consume on social media should be the user’s right as consumers to choose, not dictated unilaterally by technology companies," she added.

According to Meutya, information related to karhutla is crucial for the government to aid in response decisions.

 "The government is open to factual, credible, and accountable information regarding karhutla," she reiterated.

Meutya called on digital platforms to be more transparent and responsible regarding their algorithms.

 "Our voices are important, information is our right, and platforms must be accountable for how information reaches the public," she stated.

Previously, it was reported that social media went viral regarding the statement of Siak Regent, Afni Zulkifli, about tree-planting content in an area previously affected by karhutla being taken down or deleted by TikTok.

Afni Zulkifli had replanted trees in a former karhutla area along with Siak’s Forkopimda at the Tanjung Buton Industrial Area (KITB), which is a Siak BUMD, on Thursday (8/10/2026).

One of the planted trees was named General Herry, in honor of the former Riau police chief.

This event was later posted by Afni on her blue-verified TikTok account, Afni.Z. However, unexpectedly, the video was deleted by TikTok after reaching 5 million views.

The deletion of the video attracted attention from netizens, many of whom criticized the action.

After criticizing the takedown of her video, Afni mentioned that the deleted content had reappeared.

 "Alhamdulillah. My video that was taken down earlier today has come back after the admin acknowledged the appeal," said Afni to Kompas.com via WhatsApp message on Tuesday (20/10/2026).

The return of the deleted video was attributed to the substantial support from netizens for Afni.

 "Thank you for all the netizens' support so that the video can be watched again," Afni expressed.