Indonesia has warned YouTube that it could face sanctions over alleged vape promotion involving minors.
Indonesia’s Communications and Digital Minister Meutya Hafid said Monday she is considering action against YouTube after a video allegedly showed minors promoting electronic cigarettes on the platform.
Hafid said the ministry reprimanded YouTube on Sunday after content creator Muhammad Jannah, known as Bigmo, allegedly urged minors to promote vapes during a livestream.
“We will summon them, perhaps within three days. We have also sent a summons to hear YouTube management’s response,”
Hafid said at the ministry office Monday.
The continued broadcast of vape promotions on YouTube showed that the platform’s content moderation was inadequate to prevent potentially harmful material, she said.
Hafid said the promotion violated Indonesia’s Health Law and YouTube’s own community guidelines, which restrict content promoting nicotine products such as electronic cigarettes.
“This is dangerous not only for children but also for many people. The Indonesian public is harmed if such irresponsible actions continue,”
Hafid said.
“We will summon YouTube following yesterday’s reprimand,”
she added.
Hafid said the ministry’s authority is limited to digital platforms and their management, and that law enforcement agencies would handle any action against the individual content creator.
“That falls within the scope of law enforcement agencies. The ministry’s responsibility is toward the platform, and we will summon them,”
she said.
According to Indonesia's Ministerial Regulation No. 5 of 2020 (MR 5/2020), international platforms such as YouTube are required to comply with local content moderation obligations. The regulation establishes an administrative sanction ladder, ranging from written warning letters and financial fines to temporary suspension of services and, ultimately, outright blocking of platform access within Indonesia. This is not a theoretical threat: in 2022, the Indonesian government temporarily blocked PayPal, Steam, and Yahoo for failing to comply with MR 5/2020, restoring access only after the platforms came into compliance.
According to Minister Hafid, the government prioritizes guidance and compliance, but will not hesitate to enforce the applicable regulations if platforms fail to fulfill their obligation to moderate content that violates the rules.
Source: Antara, Tech Times
