JAKARTA: A pair of Indonesian 'researchers' participating in a leading international medical symposium in Denmark have come under intense scrutiny after allegedly using fabricated studies to secure travel grants and present at the event, fuelling concerns over academic integrity and the credibility of Indonesian researchers on the global stage.
The controversy emerged following the International Society of Pneumonia and Pneumococcal Diseases (ISPPD) symposium, held in Copenhagen from May 17 to 21, after fellow Indonesian attendee Wa Ode Dwi Daningrat, a doctoral student at the University of Oxford, in the United kingdom, uncovered irregularities in presentations delivered by another Indonesian delegate, identified only as P.
The symposium, considered one of the world’s premier forums on pneumonia and pneumococcal diseases, brought together more than 1,300 researchers, clinicians and public health experts from 86 countries.
In an Instagram post jointly shared with Ida Bagus Mandhara Brasika, a doctoral student at the University of Exeter, also in the UK, Dwi alleged that the presenter had used multiple “false identities” and repeatedly changed outfits and conference name tags while delivering different presentations.
Dwi did not immediately respond to The Jakarta Post’s request for comment, but Mandhara explained that their suspicions were initially raised because Indonesia’s pneumonia research community is relatively small and the names were unfamiliar.
“[Dwi] realised that she had never heard of P before, meanwhile the number of Indonesians working in pneumonia research is very limited,” Mandhara told the Post on Thursday (May 28).
She added that Dwi later followed several of P’s sessions and discovered inconsistencies in the identities used during the presentations, with the presenter introducing herself under different names.
Further scrutiny uncovered additional irregularities, including claims that the research had been conducted in Peru’s Andean highlands without local collaborators. In international research practice, such an arrangement is considered highly implausible.
Mandhara and Dwi also found that one institution listed in the papers, the IMCDS-Biomed Research Foundation in Jakarta, appeared not to exist.
When confronted after one of the presentations, P failed to explain the research methodology and admitted that the data had been generated using artificial intelligence with assistance from a partner, named only as RF.
Both P and RF have issued public apologies through their Instagram accounts, admitting they had falsified research to obtain grants that enabled them to travel abroad. They also acknowledged “using AI tools to compile, frame and present the research”.
The incident has since fuelled wider concerns over academic ethics in Indonesia, particularly amid mounting pressure on academics to publish internationally and participate in global conferences.
Chair of the Indonesian Council of Medical Professors (MGBKI) Budi Iman Santoso warned that fabricated medical research could have consequences far beyond reputational damage, as scientific findings often influence education, policymaking and clinical
“Patient and public safety is not negotiable,” Budi said.
“This [fabricated research] is not merely a technical issue in academic writing, but a serious warning about scientific integrity.”
Education expert Ina Liem said the case reflected longstanding structural problems in Indonesia’s academic culture, where prestige indicators such as publication counts, degrees and international conference participation are often prioritised over research ethics.
“The academic world relies heavily on trust,” Ina said, warning that once manipulation becomes associated with a country’s academic ecosystem, international institutions may become more cautious toward researchers from that country, including in evaluating proposals and awarding grants.
The controversy has also drawn the attention of lawmakers.
Deputy chair of House of Representatives Commission X overseeing education, Lalu Hadrian Irfani, called for a thorough investigation, warning that the case could damage Indonesia’s reputation among international academia if proven true.
Meanwhile, Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister Brian Yuliarto said preliminary findings suggested the individuals involved were not active lecturers or researchers at Indonesian universities, though he acknowledged the case could still affect the perception of Indonesia's broader research ecosystem. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
