Indonesia’s Governance Failures Make Further Violence Likely

Indonesia is on the brink of the abyss after riots riots throughout the country, which is a major challenge for President Prabo Subanto, a former special forces in the Special Forces, who held his position for less than a year. The demonstrators and security forces took revenge on the police buildings and government buildings and the role of politicians, including the Minister of Finance, was looted.

The protests left a total of 10 people who were killed in escalating violence-which raises unstable memories of 1998, when riots overthrew the dictator Soharto, the father of Prabo’s wife. Although everyone admits that the situation today is less dangerous, the current wave of disorders reflects the common discontent. Many Indonesians are concerned that the current mixture of the government of the campaign and concessions will fail to address the root causes of discontent.

The initial spark in Jakarta came on Thursday, August 28, when a reckless comment by a political housing suits was seized by the members of parliament by commentators via the Internet. After salaries and benefits, it was calculated, the legislator may receive 3 million Indonesian rupees ($ 183) per day in housing allowance alone from the monthly minimum wage in parts of Indonesia. The number was provocative enough to provoke automatic protests.

The accelerator came that night, when a armored vehicle driven by members of the Elite Police Unit of Primop – the mobile brigade – was over and killed a motorcycle driver, Davan Corinuan, 21, who was going through the demonstration. A video clip that was widely distributed on social media showed that the car stopped after the driver fell under his wheels before he rushed and it appears to run on Affan again when an angry crowd approached.

Huge popular anger and calls for more demonstrations. Friday and Saturday witnessed skirmishes throughout Jakarta, which escalated to the evening. The demonstrators threw rocks and bottles, shot fireworks in government buildings, and burned bus stations. Police and military units that were deployed with tear gas and rubber bullets responded. Live ammunition seems to have been used in warning shots. Starting on Saturday, the Tiktok service for the live broadcast, which many demonstrators used for a video stream of demonstrations, stopped working in the country.

Some violence seemed randomly, as demonstrators burn pieces of infrastructure like Busways. But at other times, the crowd was deliberate in choosing the targets, which included the Jakarta police headquarters, the capital, parliament, and the Primop headquarters.

The protests around the last site seemed particularly intense – recovery due to its responsibility for the driver’s death. Meanwhile, a few hundred meters away on the road, the headquarters of the Indonesian Marine Corps, which helped control the crowd – but enjoyed the reputation of his leadership when dealing with the demonstrators dating back to 1998 – did not touch. The presidential palace was also not a target.

Individual politicians who attracted popular anger at heat also felt. From Saturday night to Sunday early Sunday, the demonstrators looted the homes of the Minister of Finance, Sri Moliani, and two parliamentarians whom the demonstrators considered as not sensitive comments in response to anger over their salaries. The demonstrators looted, including money, expensive watches, Iron Man, Spider-Man, and even cats.

The protests in other cities focused on similar goals. In Makasar, where the violence appeared to have been more dangerous, the demonstrators set fire to Parliament in the city, killing three civilian employees at home. Another man, suspected of being an informant of the security forces, was beaten to death by the crowds. In Surabaya, the second largest city in Indonesia, the demonstrators set fire to the office of the Deputy Governor of Eastern Java and a police station. Many other cities throughout the archipelago have witnessed violent skirmishes around government buildings and government buildings – as well as the destruction of civil infrastructure.

A clear calm was broken due to a raid on Monday night by the police and the military police in universities in Bandung, the capital of West Java – the most populated province of Indonesia.

The government got prepared, and the government tried to respond to popular anger with promises of work to address grievances and increasingly strong security measures. Speaking to the local media on Monday, Brabu said that while people had the right to peaceful protest, he condemned violence, noting that he felt that the hidden hands were playing behind the turmoil.

“All state officials will investigate the official,” he said. “I think there are already indications, and we will not hesitate to defend people.”

On previous occasions, the President blamed the protests for foreign interference. Shortly after Babu Bayan, some ministers posted messages on social media that indicate that the disturbances were linked to the president’s readiness to stand on the “mafia” in various industries such as gasoline, rice and cooking oil.

However, the president also sought to calm the audience. On August 29, Brabu – which was carried out by the Minister of Defense, the Secretary of the Council of Ministers, and the President of Intelligence – visited the sad religion of AFFAN, whom he converted and promised to support the government to a family that lost the main family. The police and the president also promised a comprehensive investigation of the seven officers in the car that struck AFFAN.

On August 31 – made by ministers and party leaders – Prabu announced other concessions. Various parliamentary policies – including generous housing allowances and the right to work from abroad – are canceled. He also promised a meeting between politicians and civil society to address grievances. In cooperation with political parties, many non -popular politicians were suspended from Parliament.

The leader of the protests makes them difficult to analyze. While relatively disciplined organizations and unions – familiar to the authorities – had a great presence in many protests, the crowds of ordinary Indonesians joined AD HOC as well. Outside parliament on Friday night, many demonstrators seemed to be young, even teenagers.

This means that there is no one set of demands. Almost all the existing political parties joined the government – where ministerial positions were submitted by the president who put a rhetorical allowance on national unity. The most important party that does not join the ruling coalition-the Indonesian Party of the struggle (PDI-P), the largest party in the House of Representatives-has refused to declare itself an official opponent of the President. Party sources say they fear former President Jokowi Widodo will benefit from the weak prabowo. Jokowi has a strong relationship with PDI-P, in which he was a member of it, and Gibran Rakabuming Raka- Jokowi’s son is currently vice president.

Speaking to the demonstrators, some different demands appeared. In the protest on August 29, well -organized students from some universities of the most prominent capital, Foreign policy He spoke to the graduates who also attended the events. The demonstrators asked not to be identified.

“We would like to see a recognition that the regime is deeply broken and systematically,” one of them announced, adding, “They have a clear plan for reform.” The protester and their friends emphasized the need for comprehensive political reform.

In the redeemer protest later that night, outside the Parliament of Indonesia, Foreign policy Talk to a different crowd. The Indonesians, some of them of school age, were running a large road on fires-threw things and fireworks photography towards the doors of the building. The aspirations here seemed more material, with the most common hope that has expressed a decrease in the salaries of politicians as well as tax cuts.

Some tried to assemble the movement in a more systematic program. A famous one after spreading online put 17 claims to be met during the week and eight others to fulfill a year. These investigations include Affan’s death and police violence during protests, salaries freeze for parliamentarians, soldiers deployed during riots to return to barracks, anti -corruption measures, increase tax reform, and increase salaries, as well as job protection policies for workers.

Many Indonesians seem to feel economically – making glasses such as luxurious legislative salaries and providing ministers who draw government salaries from the Babu enlarged coalition attack for many.

The main economic figures look strong, but there are signs of trouble under the hood. The Indonesian economy has officially grown by 5.12 percent in the second quarter of this year, but many of them questioned the credibility of the number. Fears of the weak consumer feelings and the shrinking middle class have robbed the economy since late last year. Trump’s tariff may also deal with a bite, despite the conclusion of a deal with Washington, Indonesia has the highest effective tariff in the region by 24.5 percent, according to analysis by the Excessive Banking Banking Company in Singapore.

Home spending is under pressure, and there is widespread anxiety about the clear contraction of the middle class. Brabo’s sweeping social programs seem to be a difference. The program of free school meals has spread unevenly. To finance the amazing cost of the program, the government has reduced spending in other fields, including education, infrastructure and transfers to local governments, which responded by raising local property taxes. This protests in some areas last month.

Civil society activists and students are concerned about the crawling return of tyranny. The increasing role of the army in the government and business in particular raised concerns about returning to the days of Soharto.

Many people now fear that the limited concessions made by the president will fail to calm the crowds or address the root causes behind the protests.

“The problem is that the concessions are very small, very late, and the root causes of the problem are not dealt with, which are corrupt behaviors of officials, the goal due to the enlarged and bureaucratic ministers, the budget is lost on expensive and ineffective programs, and the financial programs that require the main tax increases at a later time or later.” Foreign policy. As a result, regardless of the results of these protests, the government will continue to face a financial crisis, higher taxes, and a number of very angry population in [the] In the long run. “