JAKARTA: Indonesian police deployed tear gas against hundreds of protesters demonstrating over the death of a motorcycle taxi driver in the capital on Friday.
President Prabowo Subianto promised a thorough investigation into the death of gig motorcycle driver Affan Kurniawan hours before the clashes erupted.
“I have ordered the last night’s incident to be thoroughly and transparently investigated, and that the officers involved be held accountable,” he said in a statement.
The government will take “the strongest possible actions” if officers are found to have acted against proper conduct and prevailing regulations, he added.
Violent clashes between protesters and police broke out on Thursday over anger at higher wages and perceived lavish perks for lawmakers, as public discontent grows over the government’s handling of the economy.
Hundreds of protesters massed at the paramilitary police unit’s Jakarta headquarters on Friday afternoon to rally against the driver’s death when police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Thousands of drivers gathered near the police mobile brigade headquarters in Jakarta Friday, demanding accountability for Kurniawan’s death.
Police cordoned off a stretch of road near the mobile brigade headquarters in central Jakarta.
They fired teargas in an attempt to disperse protesters, mostly drivers of taxi motorcylces know locally as “ojeks”.
“I joined the protest because I’m very concerned about the death of my fellow driver,” 52-year-old Muzakir told AFP.
“We demand justice for Affan, for the perpetrators who ran him over to be tried as fairly as possible, and to be fired from their institution.”
The police response to the protests drew strong criticism after videos circulated on social media showing a black tactical vehicle running over a man.
Authorities are questioning seven officers in connection with the incident, the police said.
“We have agreed that the seven suspected violators have been proven to have violated the police ethics codes,” the National Police’s head of internal affairs division, Abdul Karim told a press conference.
He said the officers would be detained for for further investigation.
Protests have also spread to other major cities in Indonesia, including Surabaya in East Java and Medan in North Sumatra province.
On Thursday hundreds rallied near the Indonesian parliament in Jakarta over issues including hefty pay for lawmakers, whose monthly housing allowance of 50 million rupiah (US$3,000) is nearly 10 times the minimum wage in Jakarta.
Labour groups also protested earlier, demanding better pay and for the government to take action against recent mass layoffs of workers.
The protests are an early challenge for Prabowo, who has pledged fast, state-driven growth to transform Southeast Asia’s largest economy into a major global powerhouse.
But some of his policies, including widespread budget cuts announced this year to fund his flagship free meal programme for schoolchildren and a new sovereign wealth fund, have sparked public discontent. – AFP