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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Culture & Society

HI Roundabout Protest: Students Urge Police Against Repression

From Tempo · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Ongoing story
  • Students protesting at HI Roundabout in Jakarta urged police to avoid repressive tactics, emphasizing their peaceful intentions and lack of weapons.
  • Protesters claimed police intercepted them en route to the rally, preventing them from reaching the site and accessing places of worship.
  • The alliance stated their protest was focused on HI Roundabout and denied plans to demonstrate at the parliament or presidential palace.

Students protesting at Jakarta's HI Roundabout on Friday called on police to refrain from repressive actions, asserting their peaceful intentions and status as students, not criminals.

Please do not take a repressive stance. We are students, not an armed criminal group (KKB). We do not carry weapons. We carry the desire to improve Indonesian people.

— Raka AndikaUI student Raka Andika speaking at the HI Roundabout protest, emphasizing the students' peaceful intentions and urging police to avoid repressive actions.

"Please do not take a repressive stance. We are students, not an armed criminal group (KKB)," said UI student Raka Andika. He emphasized that the protesters carried no weapons, only a "desire to improve Indonesian people," and asked not to be treated as enemies.

The alliance, "Towards Indonesia's Bankruptcy," claimed police intercepted them midday between Semanggi and Dukuh Atas, blocking their path to the protest site. The chair of the UI Student Executive Board, Yatalathof Ma'shum Imawan, confirmed that police were notified of the protest's location at HI Roundabout, not the parliament complex.

Do not regard us as enemies or criminals. We are part of the community. Our intention is sincere for the Indonesian nation.

— Raka AndikaRaka Andika denying accusations of orchestrated protest campaigns and asserting the students' genuine motives for the nation.

Protesters also reported being denied access to places of worship to perform Friday prayers. The alliance stated that crowds were divided and trapped in several areas, including near Gelora Bung Karno and the Fairmont hotel, due to police vigilance. While no arrests were made, the students viewed the interception as an attempt to restrict their freedom of expression.

We have already informed the police that the protest will take place at HI Roundabout.

— Yatalathof Ma'shum ImawanChair of the UI Student Executive Board (BEM UI) Yatalathof Ma'shum Imawan, stating that the police were notified about the protest location.

Despite the disruptions, the protesters regrouped near TVRI. The alliance reiterated that their demonstration was solely focused on HI Roundabout to convey their message to the public and had no intention of proceeding to the Parliament building or the Presidential Palace.

We have expressed our intention to perform Friday prayers, but no one cleared the way.

— Dimas Rumi ChattaristoChair of the Law Faculty BEM UI Dimas Rumi Chattaristo, describing the protesters' difficulties in accessing places of worship.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Tempo in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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