Jakarta – A student demonstration held near the Arjuna Wijaya Horse Statue in Central Jakarta has ended in chaos with three students being arrested, one of which was assaulted by police.
Police chased down the students after the chaos broke out on Jalan Medan Merdeka Selatan. The reason for the chaos is not yet known.
During the incident, plain-clothed police officers arrested three students. They were pinned to the ground as they were being dragged towards the National Monument (Monas). One of them was hit in the head and chest.
The perpetrator of the assault was wearing clothing with the words "police" on the back. The others meanwhile wore plain clothes with the writing “Satya Haprabu” (loyal to the head of state).
The students held the action at the Monas in the context of commemorating International Human Rights Day which falls on December 10. During the action, they demanded that the Omnibus Law on Job Creation be revoked.
Currently the situation has returned to normal and the demonstration is continuing.
Not far away, a group of workers from the Indonesian Trade Union Congress Alliance Confederation (KASBI) also held a demonstration in front of the Jakarta City Hall. They were calling on Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan to fulfill his promise on the provincial minimum wage (UMP).
The crowd of workers filled Jalan Medan Merdeka Selatan resulting in traffic congestion. A number of police officers could be seen on alert and directing traffic in the vicinity of the demonstration.
"The increase (in the UMP) is indeed not in accordance with workers' daily needs in Jakarta. We have come here to call in the Pak [Mr] governor's pledge when he said he would indeed revise the 2022 UMP", said KASBI Secretary General Sunarno. (yoa/pmg)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Demo Patung Kuda Sempat Ricuh, Mahasiswa Ditangkap dan Dipukul Polisi".]
