Joseph Rachman
Indonesia is on edge after riots rocked cities across the nation, posing a major challenge for President Prabowo Subianto, a former special forces general who has held office for less than a year. Demonstrators and security forces skirmished as police and government buildings were set alight and the houses of politicians, including the finance minister, were looted.
The protests have left a total of 10 people dead in the escalating violence—stirring uneasy memories of 1998, when riots toppled the dictator Suharto, Prabowo’s father-in-law. While all concede that the situation today is less serious, the current wave of disturbances reflects a bubbling popular discontent. Many Indonesians are worried that the government’s current mix of crackdown and concessions will fail to address the root causes behind the discontent.
The initial spark came in Jakarta on Thursday, Aug. 28, when a stray comment made by a politician about generous housing allowances for members of parliament was seized upon by online commenters. After salary and benefits, it was calculated, a legislator might get 3 million Indonesian rupiahs ($183) more a day in their housing allowances alone than the monthly minimum wage in parts of Indonesia. The figure was provocative enough to spark spontaneous protests.
The accelerant came that night, when an armored vehicle driven by members of the elite police unit Brimob—the Mobile Brigade Corps—ran over and killed a delivery driver on a motorbike, Affan Kurniawan, 21, who was passing by the demonstration. A video that circulated widely on social media showed the vehicle stop after the driver fell under its wheels before speeding off and seemingly running over Affan again when an angry crowd approached.
Massive popular outrage and calls for more demonstrations followed. Friday and Saturday saw skirmishes throughout Jakarta, which escalated into the evening. Protesters threw rocks and bottles, shot fireworks at police and government buildings, and burned down bus stops. Police and military units deployed responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Live ammunition also appears to have been used for warning shots. Starting Saturday, TikTok’s livestreaming service, which many protesters used to stream video of demonstrations, ceased to function in the country.
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