Thousands of Indonesians Protest at Parliament to Demand Tougher Anticorruption Laws

Protester Supriyono delivered a speech urging lawmakers to pass an asset forfeiture law for those guilty of corruption, outside the parliament building in Jakarta. Thousands of Indonesians marched on the parliament in Jakarta to demand harsher punishment for corrupt officials. The protests on Thursday marked the one-year anniversary of antigovernment rallies that turned into riots, resulting in about 10 deaths and nearly 7,000 arrests.

Riot police held the crowd behind the locked gates of the legislature for much of the day. According to the AFP news agency, after nightfall, some protesters threw objects at officers, who responded with tear gas and a water cannon. A police post and motorcycle were set alight, and several people were carried off on stretchers. Students also staged marches in the cities of Yogyakarta and Makassar.

Protesters demanded that parliament pass a bill, initially introduced in 2008, that would enable the state to seize assets tied to corruption. Some demonstrators at the rally called for corrupt officials to face the death penalty. According to Sopriyano, leader of the United Pati Community Alliance, some lawmakers met with representatives of the protest group outside parliament and promised to resign if the bill is not passed by December 15.

Approximately 200 students from several universities participated in the protest, urging the government to scrap a free school meal programme affected by corruption claims and repeated food poisoning incidents. They also demanded an end to the "militarisation" of Indonesian society and called for lower food prices.

"We chose August 27 to commemorate because last year there were riots and various other incidents. And today we want to convey our aspirations, not cause riots," a representative for the students told Reuters.

Jakarta police deployed 18,500 officers and detained 65 people ahead of the march on suspicion of being "provocateurs," spokesperson Budi Hermanto stated. Chief Security Minister Djamari Chaniago stated that the massive deployment was not intended to limit the right to free expression, adding, "We will escort them so that their aspirations can be conveyed properly."