TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search results
Popular Reads
Top Results
No results found. Please check your search term and try again
Can't find what you're looking for?
View all search resultsPrabowo cancels China trip as protests continue
Prabowo had been due to attend a "Victory Day" parade in China on September 3 to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two following Japan's formal surrender.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
President Prabowo Subianto delivers his first annual State of the Nation Address during the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) plenary meeting at the Senayan legislative complex in Jakarta on Aug. 15, 2025, ahead of the country's 80th Independence Day. (Reuters/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana/Pool)
P
resident Prabowo Subianto on Saturday canceled a planned trip to China as days of protests spread further outside the capital Jakarta, with several regional parliament buildings set ablaze.
Prabowo had been due to attend a "Victory Day" parade in China on September 3 to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War Two following Japan's formal surrender.
The protests, the first major test for Prabowo's nearly year-old government, began in Jakarta this week over lawmakers' pay and worsened after a police vehicle hit and killed a motorcycle rider.
"The president wants to continue monitoring (the situation in Indonesia) directly...and seek the best solutions," presidential spokesperson Prasetyo Hadi said in a video statement on Saturday.
"Therefore, the president apologizes to the Chinese government that he could not attend the invitation."
Another consideration in cancelling the trip was a United Nations General Assembly session in September, Prasetyo said.
In the light of the protest, short-video app TikTok, which is owned by China's ByteDance, said on Saturday it had suspended its live feature in Indonesia for a few days.
Jakarta had this week summoned representatives of social media platforms, including as Meta Platforms and TikTok, and told them to boost content moderation because disinformation had spread online. The government says that such disinformation has spurred protests against it.
Protests also occurred in Bali on Saturday, where teargas was used against protesters.
Local media also reported that a crowd had looted the Jakarta home of Ahmad Sahroni, a lawmaker from the political party NasDem, and taken items including household furniture.
Sahroni has faced accusations of responding insensitively to people calling for parliament to be dissolved amid anger over lawmakers' allowances. Sahroni has labeled such critics "the stupidest people in the world".
Your Opinion Matters
Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.
Enter at least 30 characters
0
/ 30
Thank you
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.
