by Rhoda Wilson, Expose News:
According to Abdullah Azwar Anas, Indonesia’s Minister of Apparatus Utilisation and Bureaucratic Reform, issuing digital IDs is vital for the optimum use of the Electronic-Based Government System and it will streamline access to integrated government services.
At least that’s how governments and organisations that stand to benefit from the scheme market the idea to the public – for our convenience.
The truth is that it is a step closer to the Global Public-Private Partnership gaining control over what people can and cannot access dependent on obedience to rules made by those who control the system.
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It will soon be possible for digital identity issuance and authentication to be done in Indonesia using two methods: either via the INA Digital app or the Public Service Portal.
Public Service Portal Indonesia is a digital platform designed to consolidate various government services into one platform; access to healthcare, education and social assistance services through a single portal.
GovTech Indonesia, officially called INA Digital, was launched in May and will be introduced for trial in September. Key features include a comprehensive digital ID system.
At its launch, Erick Thohir, the Minister for State-Owned Enterprise, said: “Today we have the confidence to begin our first step in developing a technology-based governance system.” That statement alone is enough to make anyone shudder.
President Joko Widodo underlined the importance for the country to improve its digital public infrastructure (“DPI”) capabilities, which consist of digital ID, digital payment and data exchange.
Anas said INA Digital will accommodate public applications for health services, education, social aid, digital ID, police permit for public assembly and driver’s licenses in a single portal.
Integration of INA Digital and the Public Service Portal involves a collaboration between the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Communication and Information.
Anas said that while Home Affairs will be responsible for enhancing the biometric liveness detection feature and functionality of the INA Digital, the Communication and Information Ministry will work on the single sign-on system with the Public Service Portal.
These efforts, the minister says, are all aimed at streamlining access to digital ID and authentication services and making it much easier for citizens to enjoy the government services they apply for.
Meanwhile, for the fourth time, Indonesia’s Directorate General of Population and Civil Registration (Dukcapil) has renewed its partnership with the workers’ security and social welfare programme BPJS Employment on citizen data verification for benefits.
The deal also seeks to leverage the use of digital ID data to facilitate access to services for workers during and after their working years.
Indonesia has been actively developing its digital ID infrastructure for several years through various initiatives. One initiative is a national digital ID system. Its digital identification project has funding support from the World Bank, a specialised agency of the United Nations (“UN”).
Since 2011, the Indonesian government has issued an electronic version of the national identity card, e-KTP (KTP elektronik), which contains an embedded microchip. This card is used for various purposes, including social aid disbursement and government services.
The country has continued to work towards a comprehensive national digital ID system, which aims to provide a secure and convenient way for citizens to access government services, financial transactions and other online services. The system will utilise facial recognition technology and leverage existing infrastructure, such as the e-KTP database.
By 2019, Indonesia was one of five out of the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (“ASEAN”) countries to have fully digitised their foundational identity systems. “Digital IDs are also fast becoming the cornerstone of digital societies – an important component to realise ASEANs ambition to become an integrated digital economy,” The Diplomat wrote at the time. It continued:
While digital IDs can provide access to services … the interconnected nature of the digital ID system breaks siloed information … This information can be harmful in the wrong hands.
To avoid challenges that befell the Aadhaar system in India – from identity theft to fraud – Southeast Asian governments must ensure data privacy and safety.
Public Private Partnerships (PPP) are an effective instrument of service delivery as the development and implementation of a secure and robust identity management system is technically complex and requires significant investment.
Singapore’s online account management for access to government e-services, Singapore Personal Access (SingPass) has evolved as a gateway to allow access to over 300 digital services offered by more than 60 government agencies and some private sector entities. ASEAN countries should employ a similar approach to engage commercial services and partnerships both domestically and internationally.
Getting Digital IDs Right in Southeast Asia, The Diplomat, 12 October 2019
In 2020, concerns were raised again about identity fraud when using Indonesia’s e-KTP system and the need for a robust authentication mechanism. The use of Aadhaar-like systems was proposed but not universally accepted. Aadhaar is the digital ID system used in India and is a key component of the country’s digital public infrastructure (“DPI”). Critics argued that systems such as Aadhaar can be vulnerable to hacking and may not adequately address the issue of identity verification.
Related: Bill Gates is “inspired” by digital ID and smart farming projects in India
In a 2021 article, Jakarta Globe, in typical nudging fashion, promoted the idea of Public Private Partnerships (“PPPs”) to solve the challenges of rolling out a national digital ID. The article made suggestions on how to “get everyone on board”:
Achieving high sign-up is a challenging hurdle that governments face when rolling out a national digital ID system. This is further exacerbated in rural regions where there could be a large number of undocumented citizens.
One way to get around this problem is reducing the friction points for enrolment.
Another approach involves partnering with central banks. This allows governments to access users’ information, which is then enrolled into a national digital identity initiative. However, these methods demand significant capital investment. Also, central bank databases may not contain a full collection of citizen records and are vulnerable to hacks if they are not properly architected.
A new method to pushing past these hurdles lies in the use of the citizen’s own smartphone … Leveraging the biometric identification technology available on these devices is one of the most effective, convenient, and secure ways of capturing facial biometric data and supporting documents — helping as many citizens be enrolled in a national digital ID initiative as possible. [Emphasis added]
Where Public and Private Meet: How Can Indonesia’s e-KTP Help Citizens and Businesses? Jakarta Globe, 16 April 2021
They are not attempting to hide it. It is all there in black and white. In its latest initiative, the government is herding Indonesians into a digital prison for which the gate is digital IDs. They are preparing for everyone to be controlled with biometric digital IDs – which will be required to access government services, health services, education, social benefits, police permits for public assemblies (protests), driver’s licenses and financial transactions – in a technology-based “governance” system.
Who will be running the system? The clue lies in the nature of PPPs which they claim are the solution to some of the challenges of rolling digital IDs.
PPPs may be effective instruments to achieve their goals but they are not intended to protect or benefit citizens. PPPs are a scam to rob the poor to give to the richest. And they are a key focus area for the World Economic Forum (“WEF”).
“The private sector must play a key role in inclusive economic growth. We must unite the individual efforts of different countries to create a global network of public-private partnerships,” WEF pontificated in 2022.
