JAKARTA: Student anger over Indonesia’s response to wildfires and President Prabowo Subianto’s spending priorities is set to spill onto Jakarta’s streets Wednesday, prompting authorities to deploy hundreds of security personnel ahead of planned demonstrations.
Students from the University of Indonesia planned protests at several locations in the capital under the hashtag #IndonesiaAware. Their demands include declaring the ongoing wildfires in Sumatra and Borneo a national disaster and reconsidering spending on Prabowo’s free meals program.
Authorities deployed hundreds of security personnel in Jakarta ahead of the demonstrations, with police and military personnel and armored vehicles visible in central areas. Officials have not disclosed how many students are expected to participate.
The protests come as fires continue to affect parts of Sumatra and Borneo, including areas of Central Kalimantan, where demonstrations took place last week. Students are also challenging the government’s spending priorities, making the wildfire response a focal point of wider public dissatisfaction.
Prabowo’s approval ratings have declined since late 2025, according to surveys by SMRC, about two years into his presidency.
The planned demonstrations follow major protests in August 2026, when hundreds of people were detained. Student demonstrations also took place last week.
In 2025, weeks of nationwide protests erupted after police killed a motorcycle taxi driver. Several other people died during the unrest, marking one of the most serious periods of public anger during Prabowo’s presidency.
