ASEANEWS HEADLINE-POLITICS | INDONESIA: Growing discontent with policymaking keeps students on streets
University students clash with police during a protest against government policies, including state budget spending, the free meals program and expanded military roles in civilian affairs, on June 15 in Jakarta. (Reuters/Ajeng Dinar Ulfiana)
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Shocking Protest! Indonesian Students Take To Streets Over Rising Fuel Prices & Government Policies
Indonesian students have taken to the streets protesting rising fuel costs and government policies, voicing concerns over inflation and living expenses. The demonstrations highlight growing youth frustration and calls for urgent economic reforms across the country.
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From fuel price hikes to multibillion-dollar government programs, a growing list of grievances has fueled recurring protests during President Prabowo Subianto’s first two years in office, highlighting widening public dissatisfaction with the administration’s policy direction.
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F rom fuel price hikes to multibillion-dollar government programs, a growing list of grievances has fueled recurring protests during President Prabowo Subianto ’s first year and a half in office, highlighting widening public dissatisfaction with the administration’s policy direction.
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Over the past week, a fresh wave of student-led demonstrations have swept Jakarta and several other cities as public frustration over rising living costs, a weakening rupiah and broader economic pressures intensified following the government’s decision to raise non-subsidised fuel prices by more than 30 percent last week.
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Thousands of students from universities across Greater Jakarta rallied on Friday at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle, one of the capital’s most prominent landmarks, in a protest dubbed #MenujuIndonesiaBangkrut (Heading to Bankrupt Indonesia).
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Protesters accused the government of neglecting the economic struggles of ordinary Indonesians while continuing to fund costly flagship programs. .
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Among their demands were cuts to what they described as “wasteful state spending”, lower fuel and staple food prices, measures to stabilize the rupiah and a halt to major government initiatives, including Prabowo’s flagship free nutritious meal program, which has been allocated Rp 268 trillion (US$15.1 billion) this year.
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The protests continued through Monday and spread to other cities, including Semarang in Central Java, Surabaya in East Java, Medan in North Sumatra, Lampung province and Bandung in West Java, where clashes between demonstrators and police were reported.
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Yerica Lai
The Jakarta Post-PREMIUM
Jakarta
Wed, June 17, 2026
Click to read: https://www.thejakartapost.com/indonesia/2026/06/17/growing-discontent-with-policymaking-keeps-students-on-streets?utm_source=(direct)&utm_medium=home_headlines.
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