Indonesian students protest rising prices, government’s handling of forest fires

Protesters flocked to two of Jakarta’s busiest thoroughfares, carrying banners critical of President Prabowo Subianto’s policies.

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28 Oct 2026 07:48PM

JAKARTA: Hundreds of Indonesian students took to the streets on Wednesday (Oct 28) to protest rising prices, dwindling subsidies as well as the government’s handling of forest fires.

In Jakarta, protesters from different universities and non-for-profit organisations flocked to Jalan Thamrin and Jalan Sudirman, two of the city’s busiest thoroughfares where many local and foreign companies are headquartered, carrying banners critical of President Prabowo Subianto’s policies.

They also called on the government to declare the ongoing wildfires in Sumatra and Kalimantan a national disaster and to halt spending on populist programmes such as Prabowo's free meals scheme, which have caused state spending to balloon at the expense of more critical programmes like disaster mitigation and infrastructure development.

The budget for the free school meals programme this year is 229 trillion rupiah (US$12.6 billion), a reduction from 268 trillion rupiah earlier allocated, senior officials running the project said on Jul 21, adding that further cuts were possible. 

Meanwhile, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency’s (BNPB) then-head Suharyanto had said in February the agency would receive only 491 billion rupiah for 2026, a nearly 75 percent drop from the previous year. 

In the wake of several disasters, BNPB principal secretary Rustian said in September the agency had had its regular funding increased to 1.08 trillion rupiah this year, and also has 4.62 trillion rupiah in ready-to-use emergency funds.

The protesters also criticised Indonesia’s decision in late September to cut energy subsidies from 376.8 trillion rupiah this year to 261 trillion rupiah next year.

“The subsidy cut came as many are reeling from ballooning petrol prices and the scarcity of subsidised fuel because of the tensions in the Middle East,” said 20-year-old Diana from University of Indonesia, who asked to be identified only by her first name.

“It also came as the government decided to earmark more money into wasteful programmes like the free meal initiative and village cooperatives,” she said.

Wednesday’s protest coincided with Indonesia’s Youth Pledge Day, which commemorates a declaration of unity in 1928 by young Indonesians that defined the national identity.

It was met with heavy security presence, stopping students from reaching their rendezvous point at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout, a favoured demonstration site. 

Students told CNA that they had initially planned on marching from the roundabout to the Presidential Palace some 3km away. Instead the blockade caused the students to scatter at various locations in Jakarta. 

“(Authorities) have no right to stop us from getting where we need to go and exercising our freedom of expression,” said Tigor, 23, from Pancasila University, who also asked to to be identified by his first name.

Several minor scuffles were observed as the protesters tried to press on and breach the barricade but the police were able to quell these attempts.

Protests have also been held in haze-stricken areas of Borneo and Sumatra, including one in Central Kalimantan last week.

Prabowo's approval ratings have fallen steadily since late last year, according to surveys by Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC), two years into his presidency.

Indonesia's last major protest took place in August, when hundreds were detained, and students also held demonstrations last week.

In 2025, weeks-long nationwide protests broke out in Indonesia after the police killing of a motorcycle taxi driver, with several more people killed during the unrest.