Agung Sandy Lesmana – The Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia has held a protest action against the war between Russia and the Ukraine which they say has resulted in civilian casualties, humanitarian violations and war crimes.
The protest took place in front of the Russian Embassy building on Jalan Rasuna Said in the Kuningan area of South Jakarta on Friday March 4, 2022.
The anti-war protest was attended by a number of pro-democracy activists who gave speeches – although not very many – and held up posters containing their demands.
Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia representative Safina Maulida said that Russia's leader, Vladimir Putin, is threatening humanity through a nuclear war. She said that what is happening in Ukraine today is a violation of human dignity and human rights.
"The leaders of the Russian state are threatening a nuclear war. Today, we are all witnessing how in the year 2022, human rights, human dignity, are not held in the highest esteem and how humanitarian diplomacy is being sidelined", said Maulida in a speech.
In the name of the Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia, Maulida also called on Russia to immediately end the war being conducted on land and in the air through missiles and rockets. Most importantly, they urged Russia not to use nuclear weapons.
"Today also friends, we ask Russia to immediately stop the war which is being carried out on land and in the air through missiles and rockets and most of all stop the threat to use nuclear [weapons] in the war", she added.
Maulida said that people do not gain any benefits at all from war. Moreover women and children become the subjects of torture in the war.
"We from the Milk Tea Alliance Indonesia, an alliance of pro-democracy youths are convinced that this is the worst volition against humanity in 2022. And we are sure that the children in Ukraine, in Sudan, Myanmar, and also in Venezuela, we are sure that these young children should not be [fleeing to] the boarders, but studying at school", she said.
The protesters unfurled a yellow banner with the message "Fuck War" and the names of other countries such as Ukraine, Myanmar, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, Palestine and Papua.
They also unfurled Ukrainian and Russian flags with the words "No" written on the Ukrainian flag and "War" on the Russian flag.
The action, which began at around 3 pm and ended at around 4.10 pm, proceeded peacefully and was watched over by a number of police officers.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Demo Tolak Perang di Kedubes Rusia, Massa Bentangkan Bendera Kuning Bertuliskan Fuck Wars".]
