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View all search resultsAnalysis: Indonesia’s civil uprising: From arrogant politicians to state violence
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A crowd of protesters surround the burnt frame of a car outside the Central Jakarta headquarters of the Jakarta Metropolitan Police’s Mobile Brigade (Brimob) on Aug. 29, 2025, the day after a Brimob tactical vehicle ran over and killed on-demand motorcycle driver Affan Kurniawan, 21, as he was trying to flee the area of a labor protest that had turned violent (AFP/Aditya Aji )
I
ndonesia has seen a turbulent week of public unrest centered on the House of Representatives (DPR), as outrage over lawmakers’ high pay and allowances spiraled into a broader movement demanding accountability, justice, and reform.
The wave began with the massive protest on Aug. 26 outside the DPR building in Jakarta, where thousands took aim not at specific legislation but at lawmakers themselves. Demonstrators denounced reports that House members were taking home more than Rp 100 million ($6,000) a month, excluding a controversial Rp 50 million housing allowance. Some have even put it at Rp 230 million a month. Former minister and legislator Mahfud MD even put it at more than Rp 1 billion a month.
Their anger was compounded by viral videos of lawmakers singing and dancing after President Prabowo Subianto’s Aug. 15 state of the nation address, in which he had called for national austerity. The images of indulgent lawmakers, paired with misinformation about salary hikes, crystallized widespread resentment at a time when most Indonesians are living through uncertain economic realities.
Many Indonesians are still earning below the official minimum wage, which ranges between Rp 2.1 million and Rp 5.4 million a month, depending on the region.
The dissolution of the House was one of the demands of protesters. Although this is not likely to happen, it reflects the low confidence the public has in its elected representatives.
Clashes broke out as police tried to control the Aug. 26 protest, but tensions deepened further when demonstrations resumed on Aug. 28. That day, Affan Kurniawan, a ride-hailing motorcycle driver, was struck and killed by a police armored vehicle during efforts to disperse crowds in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
His death, widely shared on social media, turned the protests from a debate about DPR salaries and political arrogance into a broader movement against state violence. Protesters’ chants shifted from merely abolishing allowances to demands for justice for Affan and accountability from both the police and lawmakers.
