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Indonesia Protests After Police Vehicle Kills 21-Year-Old Rider as Seven Officers Are Detained

Public anger over lavish parliamentary allowances as living costs rise has coalesced into demands for police accountability.

Overview

  • Affan Kurniawan, a 21-year-old ride-hailing driver, was struck and run over by a Brimob armored vehicle near parliament in Jakarta, with widely shared videos fueling outrage.
  • Police leaders apologized to the family, and President Prabowo Subianto ordered a thorough, transparent investigation, pledging accountability if misconduct is confirmed.
  • Seven Brimob personnel from the vehicle have been detained for ethics violations as questioning continues, according to police officials including Abdul Karim.
  • Students, riders, and labor groups rallied in Jakarta and other cities such as Surabaya, Medan, Bandung, and Gorontalo, with clashes involving tear gas, water cannon, and attempts to breach Brimob HQ.
  • The unrest weighed on markets, with the rupiah closing about 0.9% weaker against the dollar and the main stock index down roughly 1.5% after an intraday drop of as much as 2.3%.