Spread of deepfakes in Indonesia highlights need for effective regulation

Concerns raised as Golkar video using Suharto's image goes viral ahead of polls

- Hariz Baharudin

The "resurrection" of the late president Suharto, in the form of a deepfake video that went viral in Indonesia recently, has raised concerns about the technology destabilising the country and manipulating voters as it prepares for the general election in February.

On Jan 7, political party Golkar's deputy general chair Erwin Aksa shared the deepfake video on social media platform X, setting the Internet in Indonesia ablaze. The video went viral and accumulated 4.2 million views and 1,200 comments within five days.

The video, which features Mr Suharto endorsing candidates from the party, was made using artificial intelligence (AI).

"I am President Suharto, the second president of Indonesia, inviting you to elect representatives of the people from Golkar," the fake Mr Suharto said.

More than 204 million people in Indonesia, the world's third-largest democracy, will go to the polls on Feb 14 to vote for their president, MPs, the Regional Legislative Council and the Regional Representative Council.

Mr Suharto, who died in 2008, is a controversial figure in the history of Indonesia. His 32-year term as the archipelago's leader is seen as an authoritarian regime or dictatorship, punctuated by reports of human rights abuses, nepotism and corruption.

In the caption of the video, Mr Erwin specified that the video was made using AI, and said it was made to remind voters about how important their votes were, which will "determine the future so that the hopes of the Indonesian people are realised".

News reports on the video started appearing soon after the video was published, with online media sites and prime-time television news bulletins clarifying that it was not a real depiction of Mr Suharto.