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mmanuel Gobay, a public lawyer with the Yogyakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH), and a few other lawyers claimed to have been harassed by dozens of local police officers while advocating for students arrested during May Day rallies.

Four students have been named suspects for different charges.

The case began when several public lawyers came to the Yogyakarta Police headquarters to provide legal assistance to local university students. The students had been arrested by the police due to their alleged involvement in May Day rallies, which turned into riots, at the Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University intersection on Tuesday.

Dozens of university students representing different student groups held rallies during May Day, demanding the removal of feudalism in Yogyakarta, the only province in Indonesia ruled by a sultan. They also demanded that the construction of the new Yogyakarta International Airport be halted and Law No. 2/2012 on land acquisition be revoked.

The students then burned a police post at the intersection and wrote “Kill Sultan!” at several spots including at the university gate, on a billboard and on a Trans Jogja bus.

According to the LBH Yogyakarta, the lawyers arrived at the Yogyakarta Police headquarters at 7 p.m. but were barred from coming inside to meet the students, who were being questioned at a hall. They were eventually allowed to wait at the hall balcony, from which they could monitor questioning from outside. At 8:30 p.m., however, a police officer suddenly shouted, asking all civilians — referring to the lawyers — to leave the place because their presence had obstructed the process.

The lawyers demanded an explanation from the police, who said they were exercising discretion. Emmanuel, who insisted on staying, was then allegedly pushed and hit by a police officer.

“There were six of us from the LBH Yogyakarta, and we were pushed. A police officer directly hit me twice, but I managed to duck the second hit,” Emmanuel told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

LBH Yogyakarta advocacy department head Yogi Zul Fadhli condemned the incident, saying there were dozens of policemen harassing his members.

“Moreover, this was done at the police headquarters, which supposedly provides protection for civilians,” Yogi said.

He said the lawyers were there as professionals who provide legal assistance and were not personally connected to the students.

The public lawyers also supported the police’s stance to investigate the violence during May Day rallies.

“Lawyers and police officers are all law enforcers. We will take legal measures to deal with this,” he said.

Yogyakarta Police spokesperson Adj. Sr. Comr. Yulianto said at the time of the incident at the police headquarters, the police had just started to write down the students’ information, meaning that it had not yet entered a legal process. During such a process, he claimed, unrelated civilians should stay away.

He also rebuffed the allegation, saying the lawyers were merely asked to leave the room.

“We didn’t even allow police officers not related to the case to be involved,” he said.

Yulianto refused to comment on the allegations of physical harassment of the lawyers.

“We haven’t received reports of the harassment,” he said.

Yulianto said four students had been named suspects for different charges. Three students had been named suspects for their alleged roles in the violence, while another was for drug consumption. As of Wednesday afternoon, dozens of the students were still at the police headquarters.

Separately, Yogyakarta Governor Sultan Hamengku Buwono X said he was not offended by the students’ act. He insisted that he still felt safe despite the perceived threat against him.

“I won’t file a report against [the students], but I will let the police proceed with the legal process. I heard that there was a Molotov cocktail, which indicates that it was planned ahead of time,” he said after a meeting with Yogyakarta Police chief Brig. Gen. Ahmad Dofiri.