Thousands protest in Jakarta for stronger anti-corruption measures

JAKARTA: Thousands of protestors gathered outside Indonesia’s parliament in Central Jakarta on Thursday (Aug 27) demanding stronger anti-corruption measures and wider political and social reforms.

The demonstrators came from the capital as well as other parts of Indonesia.

About 1,000 people from the Gerakan Rakyat Menggugat (GERAM) alliance, comprising student and civil society groups, protested in front of the parliament complex in Senayan from 2pm.

Waving banners with statements including “the country cannot be defeated by corruptors” and “seize corruptors’ assets”, they put forward 10 demands.

They include calls to hold President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka accountable for policies deemed to have expanded the role of the military, weakened democracy, and exacerbated economic inequality.

The group also called on the government to evaluate and halt the free meals programme and the Red White village cooperatives, stop tax policies it deemed oppressive to the people, raise workers' wages and seize assets from corruptors, among other things. The village cooperatives programme aims to help rural communities through loans for underbanked farmers, subsidised goods and food aid, among other things.

“We are here not to be anarchist and not to be violent. We are here to voice our aspirations,” said Haerul Alam, a protester from GERAM. 

The protest was largely peaceful. But several protesters climbed the parliament complex's fence and shortly before 7pm local time, the police fired a water cannon at protestors pushing the fence to try and get into the complex. Police personnel in full protective gear then stormed out, prompting the protestors to scatter.

Earlier in the day, another group from Central Java called the United Pati Community Alliance (AMPB) also held a protest. 

The group had two demands: For parliament to pass the Asset Forfeiture Bill and the death penalty for corruption convicts.

The Asset Forfeiture Bill seeks to allow the state to trace, block, seize, and confiscate assets linked to economic crimes and corruption without requiring a prior criminal conviction. 

It is currently under deliberation in the House of Representatives, which aims to pass it by December. 

Some parliamentarians met with representatives of AMPB and said they would pass the Bill by Dec 15. AMPB responded by saying it would protest again if this does not happen.

The group was established last year when tens of thousands staged a protest in Pati demanding that its regent Sudewo step down. Sudewo had sparked outrage after raising the rural and urban land tax by up to 250 per cent. 

Early this year, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) held Sudewo on suspicion of bribery and extortion related to the filling of village official positions.

Indonesian authorities deployed 18,504 security personnel across six designated zones in Jakarta to maintain order on Thursday. They also diverted traffic around the parliament complex. 

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police detained 65 individuals as part of “preventive action” to maintain public order and prevent security disruptions, said its head of public relations Budi Hermanto, as reported by Antara.

Sixty-three of them were detained by the Criminal Investigation Directorate in East Jakarta while two others were detained by the Cybercrime Directorate. 

They are being questioned to determine “their respective roles and whether they face potential criminal liability”, Hermanto said.

There was also controversy leading up to the protests. The state-owned Bank Mandiri had frozen the account of the AMPB’s protest coordinator, Supriyono, drawing criticism from civil society groups. The bank later unfroze his account and attributed it to a request by law enforcement authorities.

Thursday’s protests took place a year after Indonesia saw widespread protests against lavish lawmaker housing allowances at a time of economic uncertainty and government austerity measures. 

The protests last August and September escalated after a delivery rider, who was not a demonstrator, died after being run over by a police tactical vehicle on Aug 28, 2025. The tragedy sparked more demonstrations against police brutality.

In the wake of the protests, Indonesia President Prabowo Subianto replaced five Cabinet ministers in a reshuffle. 

The police officer who ran over the delivery rider was demoted while his team commander was dismissed.