Indonesian president says lawmakers’ perks to be cut after deadly protests

Prabowo Subianto says immoderate parliament policies to beryllium revoked arsenic helium besides promises stern enactment against rioters and looters.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto says governmental parties person agreed to revoke a fig of perks and privileges for parliamentarians successful a large concession to radical taking portion successful antigovernment protests that person killed astatine slightest 5 people.

Protests implicit what the demonstrators person criticised arsenic excessive wage and lodging allowances for parliamentarians started connected Monday and expanded into riots connected Thursday aft 1 person, a motorcycle rideshare driver, was killed successful a constabulary enactment astatine a protestation site.

Rioters ransacked oregon acceptable ablaze the homes of immoderate members of the governmental parties arsenic good arsenic immoderate authorities installations arsenic protests rocked large cities successful Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.

“Leaders successful parliament person conveyed that they volition revoke a fig of parliament policies, including the size of allowances for members of parliament and a moratorium connected overseas enactment trips,” Prabowo said astatine a quality league astatine the Presidential Palace portion flanked by the leaders of assorted governmental parties.

The president said protests should instrumentality spot peacefully and if radical destroyed nationalist facilities oregon looted backstage homes, “the authorities indispensable measurement successful to support its citizens.” He said helium had ordered the subject and constabulary to instrumentality stern enactment against rioters and looters.

“The rights to peaceful assembly should beryllium respected and protected. But we cannot contradict that determination are signs of actions extracurricular the law, adjacent against the law, adjacent leaning towards treason and terrorism,” helium said.

Widespread protests

The protests spread crossed Indonesia, including the capital, Jakarta, aft a video of a motorcycle taxi operator being tally implicit by a constabulary conveyance astatine a rally against perks for lawmakers went viral.

The president pledged an probe into the sidesplitting of motorcycle gig operator Affan Kurniawan and promised to assistance his family. Seven officers successful the armoured van were detained for investigation.

The grievances of protesters are many, but rallies this week focused connected the revelation that lawmakers were receiving a lodging allowance astir 10 times higher than the minimum wage successful Jakarta.

Protests dispersed to different cities, including Yogyakarta, Bandung, Semarang and Surabaya successful Java and Medan successful North Sumatra.

At slightest 3 radical were killed aft protesters started a occurrence astatine a assembly gathering connected Saturday successful the eastbound metropolis of Makassar.

The protests are the biggest and astir convulsive of Prabowo’s presidency and a cardinal trial for the erstwhile wide little than a twelvemonth into his five-year term.