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5 Sep 2025 2:58
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  •   Home > News > International

    Indonesian protests have escalated, high school student Andika went to one in Jakarta and never returned

    One group claims 16-year-old Andika died after being assaulted by police at one of the protests that have erupted across Indonesia.


    When Abdul Gopur's 16-year-old son Andika didn't come to his father's coffee cart to bring him lunch, he knew something was wrong.

    "We asked his school about his whereabouts, and they said he requested permission to leave early," Mr Gopur told 7.30.

    "We heard he was influenced by his friend and they went to Jakarta.

    "My son followed the crowd without knowing much about the protests."

    Mr Gopur and his wife Alfi Sofiatun lay awake that night as it rained heavily, wondering why Andika wasn't home.

    The next day on social media they read that an unidentified teenager had been taken to hospital.

    Andika's older brother travelled an hour from Tangerang to Jakarta to try and find his missing brother.

    "When he got there, he found that Andika was in an ICU in a coma," Mr Gopur said.

    "We got there, but we didn't even get to talk to him, as he was in a coma. 

    "The hospital told us it was blunt force trauma to the head, that caused a fracture in his skull. His brain was bleeding.

    "We had hoped he would survive but God had a different will.

    Police clash with protesters

    It's not clear how Andika received his injuries but his family, amid the turmoil of this tumultuous moment in Indonesia, don't want an investigation.

    Protests began early last week, specifically over entitlements and perks received by MPs that were perceived to be excessive and insensitive, at a time when the nation is facing economic inequality, austerity and a high cost of living.

    During the protest at Indonesia's parliament last Thursday, young people were hurling objects at Brimob officers, Indonesia's paramilitary police unit.

    Those police closed in on thousands of people, swinging batons and firing tear gas.

    Footage from the late afternoon and throughout the evening showed skirmishes and clashes between police and mostly young Indonesian men on the streets of Jakarta.

    That night, an armoured police vehicle drove at protesters, killing 21-year-old rideshare motorbike driver Affan Kurniawan.

    It was in this environment that Andika is thought to have received his fatal injuries.

    In a post to social media, a civil society group that has been tracking the death toll from this last week of unrest said Andika died after a "police assault" during the demonstration near Indonesia's parliament.

    The National Commission on Human Rights said it is investigating his death.

    The ABC has contacted Jakarta Police about Andika's death but has not received a response.

    Calls for investigation into police response

    Non government organisations (NGOs) say at least 10 people have been killed since last Thursday, as unrest rippled across the country. 

    Three government workers were killed in Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi, when a provincial government building was set on fire.

    The NGOs say two university students have also died amid clashes with police, one in Yogyakarta and another in Central Java.

    The deaths have brought into focus questions over the use of Brimob to quell protests.

    The UN's High Commission for Human Rights has called for an investigation into "alleged violations of international human rights law", stemming from the response to the protests.

    "The authorities must uphold the rights to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression while maintaining order, in line with international norms and standards, in relation to the policing of public assemblies," a spokesperson said.

    "All security forces, including the military when deployed in a law enforcement capacity, must comply with the basic principles on the use of force and firearms."

    For Mr Gopur his problem was not the protests but that children, like his son, became involved.

    "The protesters demanded for MPs to not only think of themselves, because a lot of people are suffering, so they do the protests for all of us," Mr Gopur said.

    "The mistake was for children to join."

    The Suharto comparison

    There has been an enormous police and military presence on the streets of Jakarta since Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto promised a firm response to actions he labelled as "treason" and "terrorism"

    Despite fears of a crackdown, some scattered protests have been taking place in recent days, with university students, NGOs and civil society groups issuing demands to parliament that they want met by the end of the week.

    They include the release of arrested protesters, democratic and economic reforms, and an end to police violence.

    The groups also want an independent investigation team to be formed into the deaths of Affan Kurniawan and other "victims of state violence".

    Late Wednesday night, an officer who was in the vehicle that killed Mr Kurniawan was "dishonourably" sacked, with six other officers awaiting the result of an ethics hearing.

    The violence, carried out by police and members of the public across the country, has dismayed many, particularly those who lived through the 1998 riots that led to the fall of the autocratic leader Suharto.

    Those riots were triggered by economic inequality, the deaths of students and demonstrators, as well as discrimination against ethnic Chinese-Indonesians.

    Usman Hamid, director of Amnesty International Indonesia, who took part in the 1998 protests, says he's experiencing "déjà vu".

    "Last week what we have been seeing is similar feelings of growing frustration among Indonesian society towards government policies deemed to be unjust and unfair," he said.

    "I believe that most of the demonstrations across Indonesia are organic in a way that they went to the street to protest peacefully to articulate their anxiety, to articulate their economic suffering.

    "The government deployed police and military, and police brutality resulted in the death of Affan Kurniwan … it resulted in a further escalation of protests and anger among the people of Indonesia with those heavy-handed tactics."

    Core to many Indonesians' complaints is that they feel expensive allowances and entitlements given to MPs are insensitive at a time of austerity measures and budget cuts by Mr Prabowo's government.

    The monthly housing allowance for MPs that protesters focused on last week, of more than $4,000, is almost ten times the monthly minimum wage in Jakarta.

    Rideshare and delivery drivers, or Ojol, are trying to make peace with security forces after the death of their colleague, but their core economic issues remain.

    "The economy for the past two years has really dropped drastically," 28-year-old driver Rieska Amalia said.

    "For those whose salary is below minimum wage, they feel everything is expensive.

    "Most are single parents … school fees are expensive, so is rent."

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