Fighting fire with fire?

Fri, October 9, 2020 / 03:22 pm

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Smoke signal: Protesters wave the Indonesian flag before a burning tire on Wednesday, October 7.2020 during a protest near the Pasar Rebo flyover in East Jakarta. Similar scenes took place in major cities nationwide during the three-day demonstrations to protest the newly passed Job Creation Law. JP/P.J. Leo
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Body shield: Police officers use their shields to form a riot line during a protest on Wednesday, October 7.2020 organized by the Tangerang Workers Alliance on Jl. Daan Mogot in Tangerang, Banten. Nationwide protests have been held from Tuesday to Thursday since the Job Creation Law received final approval from the House of Representatives on Monday. JP/Dhoni Setiawan
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Putting their foot down: Members of a factory union stand behind a banner protesting the recently passed omnibus bill on job creation during a strike on Wednesday, October 7.2020 at the sports footwear factory of PT Panarub Industry in Tangerang. The banner calls on workers to answer to the “challenge”: “Don’t let them silence you. Reject and challenge the omnibus law on job creation.” JP/Dhoni Setiawan
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Tipping point: Student protesters overturn a police van during a protest on Wednesday, October 7. 2020 in Pejompongan, Central Jakarta. Demonstrations have taken place in major cities across the country from Tuesday to Thursday to protest the omnibus bill on job creation, which was passed on Monday. JP/Dhoni Setiawan
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Seeing red: Protesters hold a giant effigy of a wild boar during a protest against the Job Creation Law on Thursday, October 8. 2020 at the Yogyakarta Legislative Council in Malioboro, Yogyakarta. JP/Donny Fernando
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(Not) on the fence: Protesters sit on a wall above a banner during a peaceful demonstration on Thursday, October 7. 2020 in Harmoni, Central Jakarta. The banner gives voice to the protesters’ sense of public betrayal, pointing out that it is the people that elect and pay the salaries of lawmakers, only for them to “cause trouble”. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
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Close quarters: A policeman fires tear gas as other police officers take cover behind their shields on Thursday, October 8. 2020 during a protest in Harmoni, Central Jakarta. Civil society and rights groups on Thursday called on police to follow procedure and avoid using excessive force in dispersing protesters. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
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No violence: A protester holds up his arms while sitting in a road during a protest on Thursday, october 8. 2020 in Harmoni, Central Jakarta. The demonstration in the historic district descended into violence as a clash broke out between protesters and the police. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
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Severe migraine: A student protester holds up a poster based on the packaging design of a headache medicine on Thursday, October 8. 2020 during a demonstration on Jl. M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta. The poster reads: “The omnibus law causes headaches, environmental damage, workers’ oppression.” JP/Seto Wardhana
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Cause for tears: A protesters sits in a road as tear gas fired by police obscures the scene behind him during a demonstration on Thursday, October 8. 2020 in Harmoni, Central Jakarta. Labor unions, students and members of the general public have been up in arms since Monday, when the House of Representatives gave its final approval for passing the job creation omnibus bill into law. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
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Graffitti protest: Words spray-painted on a wall in Jakarta reflect the sense of public betrayal that has fueled three days of nationwide demonstrations against the omnibus bill on job creation, which the House of Representatives passed on Monday. The graffiti reads: “Want to be elected/Want to be heard/After [they are] elected/They don’t want to hear. R.I.P.” JP/Seto Wardhana
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Divided nation: A student walks beneath a large Indonesian flag on Thursday, October 8. 2020 during a protest against the newly passed Job Creation Law on Jl. M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta. JP/Seto Wardhana
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Unwitting casualty: Three men carry another man who was injured on Thursday, October 8. 2020 during a demonstration on Jl. M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta. Some protests over the three days since the Job Creation Law was passed on Monday have descended into violence, with fires and clashes reportedly breaking out in several cities. JP/Seto Wardhana
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Up in flames: Protesters run past the Hotel Indonesia Transjakarta bus shelter in Central Jakarta as it is engulfed by a fire during a demonstration on Thursday, October 8. 2020 that turned violent. Nationwide demonstrations since Tuesday have demanded the immediate revocation of the Job Creation Law. JP/Seto Wardhana

Protests against the controversial Job Creation Law have continued across the nation since Monday, when the omnibus bill on job creation received the final approval of the House of Representatives (DPR). Thousands of workers and students have taken to the streets in a series of demonstrations from Tuesday to Thursday, with some turning violent in clashes between protesters and the police.

The protests have demanded the government and the House to revoke the law, which many scholars and activists have said would do more harm than good to workers’ rights and the environment. This is despite the government’s claims that the law was urgently needed to boost investment and create more jobs.

In Central Jakarta on Thursday, a clash between protesters and police led to a blaze at the Hotel Indonesia Transjakarta bus shelter. Another fire occurred later in the evening in Senen, also in Central Jakarta.

Similar incidents occurred on the island of Sumatra in the North Sumatra capital of Medan and in Jambi, the capital of its namesake province. Protesters threw stones and plastic bottles at regional councils while police formed riot lines.

Clashes also occurred on the first two days of the planned three-day demonstrations, with dozens of protesters detained by the police.

In the latest developments, civil society and rights organizations on Thursday urged police to stop using “repressive” measures, citing reports that alleged the police were using excessive force in quelling the protests. (vny/vla)