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# Indonesia protests explained: what students demand of Prabowo
- URL: https://bullquill.com/indonesia-protests-prabowo-two-years-haze-demands/
- Published: 2026-10-21T11:58:01.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T07:29:12.000Z
- Description: The rallies in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Bandung, Makassar, Medan and other cities capped weeks of protests over forest fires and toxic haze. The government points to a Rp760 billion fire response and a Rp26.34 trillion stimulus package.
- Author: Rowan Ashby
- Tags: World, Trending, Explainer, #lang-en, #tr-indonesia-protests-prabowo-two-years-haze-demands

## Key takeaways

- Students and civil society groups rallied in Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Bandung, Makassar, Medan and other cities on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, the second anniversary of President Prabowo Subianto taking office.
- Their five headline demands, published by a student alliance, range from declaring the forest fires and floods a national disaster to fighting corruption, protecting free speech and cutting the cost of education and health care.
- The rallies capped weeks of smaller protests over forest fires and toxic haze in Sumatra and Kalimantan, labor law, food prices and the free meals program.
- The government says it respects the right to protest and points to a Rp760 billion fire response, a Rp26.34 trillion stimulus package and a pledge to keep fuel prices unchanged through the end of 2026.
- The protests come as markets are under strain: the Jakarta Composite Index suffered its heaviest fall since early 1998 on October 16 after MSCI proposed a rare downgrade.

The **Indonesia protests** on October 20, 2026, the second anniversary of President Prabowo Subianto taking office, saw students rally in Jakarta and other cities. A student alliance published five demands, from a national disaster declaration for forest fires to cheaper education and health care.

## Background: a year of recurring protest

Indonesia has seen waves of protest since early 2025\. In late August 2025, antigovernment rallies turned into riots in which about 10 people were killed and nearly 7,000 were arrested, Al Jazeera reported. Protests returned in June 2026, when the rupiah hit a record low against the dollar and students criticized a fuel price increase, spending on the free nutritious meals program and the growing role of the military in civilian affairs.

On August 27, 2026, a year to the day after the 2025 riots, thousands marched on parliament in Jakarta to demand tougher action on corruption, Al Jazeera reported. Their central demand was a bill, first brought to parliament in 2008, that would let the state seize assets linked to corruption. A residents' group that led the march said some lawmakers promised to resign if the bill is not passed by December 15\. Police deployed 18,500 officers and detained 65 people before the march as suspected "provocateurs," a Jakarta police spokesperson said; after dark, a police post was set alight and police used tear gas and a water cannon.

The latest wave has a new driver. Indonesia is facing one of its worst forest fire seasons in years, worsened by an El Niño-driven drought. Haze has spread to Singapore and Malaysia, where schools in several states have closed, The Straits Times reported. On October 15, four firefighting personnel were killed battling a blaze in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park in East Java, according to the Forestry Ministry.

## What happened: a timeline

- **October 5:** Hundreds of students in Palembang, South Sumatra, demand fire prevention, transparency over firefighting funds and action against companies they blame for the fires, The Straits Times reported. In Jakarta, student groups protest outside parliament over a national education bill.
- **October 8:** In Jambi, protesters block a road and damage the gate of a government office; police disperse them with a water cannon.
- **October 13:** Hundreds of students rally outside the governor's office in Riau. In Palembang, a protest turns violent after a clash with another group outside the provincial police headquarters; two journalists, two students and a police officer are injured, according to the state news agency Antara.
- **October 15:** In Central Kalimantan, representatives of 15 villages and volunteer firefighters demand that the fires be declared a national disaster and that helicopters be sent for water-bombing. Hundreds of journalists protest in Palembang over the attack on their colleagues.
- **October 16:** The Jakarta Composite Index falls more than 11%, its heaviest drop since early 1998, after MSCI proposes moving Indonesia from Emerging Market to "Standalone" status.
- **October 20:** Greenpeace Indonesia activists hang banners from the Welcome Monument at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle during the morning rush hour; police and firefighters remove them at about 8 a.m. Students then hold a symbolic action at the Proclamation Monument and a larger rally at the Tugu Tani monument in central Jakarta. Rallies take place the same day in Yogyakarta, Bandung, Makassar, Medan, Pekanbaru, Palangka Raya, Pontianak and Banda Aceh, according to local media compiled by Indonesian-language Wikipedia.

## How big were the protests?

No official nationwide turnout figure has been published. The Jakarta Post described "hundreds of students from several universities" at Tugu Tani in Jakarta. Security deployments give a sense of how seriously authorities took the day.

| Indicator                                             | Figure            | Source                                                                            |
| ----------------------------------------------------- | ----------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Joint security personnel deployed in Jakarta, Oct. 20 | 9,505             | Jakarta authorities, reported by Batam News Asia                                  |
| Police deployed in Bandung, Oct. 20                   | 3,248             | West Java police via IDN Times (compiled by Wikipedia; not independently checked) |
| Police deployed for the Aug. 27 march in Jakarta      | 18,500            | Jakarta police via Al Jazeera                                                     |
| Fire response budget for seven provinces              | Rp760 billion     | Government Communication Agency via Antara                                        |
| Second-half 2026 stimulus package                     | Rp26.34 trillion  | Government Communication Agency via Antara                                        |
| Nationwide fire hot spots, 9 p.m. Oct. 15             | 799 (up from 372) | Forestry Ministry SiPongi system via The Straits Times                            |

Most rallies were peaceful, according to available reports. Local media cited by Wikipedia reported scuffles between police and students in Makassar, a broken gate at the governor's office in Aceh, and protesters being hit by unidentified people in Pontianak. We have not found official injury or arrest totals for October 20; those details remain unconfirmed.

## What protesters are demanding

The Jakarta rally was organized by an alliance of students and civil society groups called Komite Sadar, with student bodies from universities in Jakarta, Bandung, Semarang, Yogyakarta, Surabaya and Malang taking part in their own cities, Kompas reported. Their five demands were:

1. Declare the forest fires and floods a national disaster, protect public health, and prosecute and revoke the permits of companies responsible.
2. Fix economic policymaking and restore market confidence.
3. Stop restrictions on freedom of expression.
4. Eradicate corruption, collusion and nepotism.
5. Lower the cost of education, health care and public services, and make access fairer.

A main banner at Tugu Tani called for the military to be removed from several government programs, including the free meals program, Kompas reported. The University of Indonesia's student body said its protest would focus on the forest fires, the stock-market sell-off and the weaker rupiah, which it called signs of fragility in the economy. That is the students' assessment, not an official conclusion.

Outside Jakarta, demands were more local. Protesters in Makassar called for some ministers to resign, and students in Central Kalimantan raised fuel shortages, power cuts and clean water alongside the fires, according to local reports compiled by Wikipedia.

## How the government responded

The government's main public response came from Syahganda Nainggolan, head of the Government Communication Agency (Bakom). Responding to the Greenpeace action, he said the government respects the protest as a form of free expression and that the president shares concerns about the climate crisis and living costs, Antara reported. He added that the government's work on these issues "is not yet finished" and invited Greenpeace to send its data and recommendations to the relevant ministries.

Nainggolan listed measures already taken: Rp760 billion for fire response in seven provinces, with Prabowo personally leading the effort; tougher law enforcement against those responsible, whom he described as committing "ecological terrorism"; a Rp26.34 trillion stimulus package that includes 10 kilograms of rice for 33.24 million beneficiaries; the release of an extra 1 million tons of rice from reserves; and unchanged fuel prices through the end of 2026.

On the fires, the government has not declared a national disaster. The newly appointed head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency said on October 15 that officials would assess whether the fires warrant a national or regional classification, and that a fast, effective response is the priority, The Straits Times reported. Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni visited Central Kalimantan during the protests there.

We did not find a formal statement from parliament (DPR) on the October 20 demands as of publication. Jakarta police spokesperson Budi Hermanto said ahead of the protests that students from at least two universities were expected at several locations.

## What it means

**Politics.** The protests suggest discontent is broadening, even if turnout was modest. The protests have not yet produced a single leader or organization able to negotiate on behalf of the movement.

**Markets.** The protests did not cause the market sell-off, which followed MSCI's October 15 proposal, but students have folded the market slump into their case against government economic management. The index fell more than 11% on October 16, AFP reported, and rebounded 5.65% to close at 5,278.89 on October 20, the day of the rallies, according to Kompas. For the market background, see our analysis of [Indonesia's capital flows, MSCI and the rupiah](https://bullquill.com/indonesia-capital-flows-msci-standalone-oct-2026/). Bank Indonesia was due to announce a rate decision on October 21.

**Environment and health.** The haze is the issue most likely to keep protests going outside Java. Each week without a disaster declaration gives local groups a concrete demand to rally around.

## What comes next

- **Fire season:** Whether the government upgrades the fires to a national disaster, and whether rain eases the haze, will shape protests in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
- **Asset forfeiture bill:** The December 15 date that, according to the August 27 march organizers, some lawmakers tied to their resignation pledge, is the next fixed date for anti-corruption campaigners.
- **Markets:** MSCI's consultation on Indonesia runs to April 30, 2027, with a decision due by June 30, 2027.
- **Policing:** Journalists' groups are pressing for accountability over attacks on reporters in Palembang and other cities.

## Related coverage

- [Global Protest Tracker: Where People Are Marching in October 2026](https://bullquill.com/global-protest-tracker-october-2026/)
- [Indonesia daily brief: IHSG rebounds 5.65% ahead of BI rate call](https://bullquill.com/indonesia-stocks-daily-brief-2026-10-21/)

## Frequently asked questions

### Why are students protesting in Indonesia in October 2026?

The October 20 rallies marked two years of President Prabowo Subianto's government. Students cited the forest fires and haze, rising living costs, the stock market slump and weaker rupiah, corruption and restrictions on free expression.

### What are the protesters' five demands?

Declare the forest fires and floods a national disaster and prosecute companies responsible; fix economic policymaking and restore market confidence; stop restrictions on free expression; eradicate corruption, collusion and nepotism; and lower the cost of education, health care and public services, according to Kompas.

### How did the Indonesian government respond?

The Government Communication Agency said the government respects the protests as free expression and cited a Rp760 billion fire response, a Rp26.34 trillion stimulus package, extra rice releases and a pledge to keep fuel prices unchanged through 2026\. It has not declared the fires a national disaster.

### Were the October 20 protests violent?

Most rallies appear to have been peaceful. Local media reported scuffles in Makassar and incidents in Aceh and Pontianak. No official nationwide injury or arrest totals had been published as of October 21.

### Are the protests linked to the Indonesian stock market fall?

Not directly. The market fell after MSCI's October 15 proposal to reclassify Indonesia, but students cited the sell-off and the weaker rupiah as evidence of poor economic management.

## Sources

- [The Jakarta Post: Growing discontent spills into streets as Prabowo marks two years in office](https://www.thejakartapost.com/indonesia/2026/10/21/growing-discontent-spills-into-streets-as-prabowo-marks-two-years-in-office?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Antara: Indonesia responds to Greenpeace protests on climate and living costs](https://en.antaranews.com/news/436849/indonesia-responds-to-greenpeace-protests-on-climate-and-living-costs?ref=bullquill.com)
- [The Straits Times via The Star: Protests spread in Indonesia as anger mounts over forest fires and haze](https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2026/10/16/protests-spread-in-indonesia-as-anger-mounts-over-forest-fires-and-haze?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Kompas: The five demands of the October 20 student protest (Indonesian)](https://amp.kompas.com/tren/read/2026/10/20/062700865/daftar-5-tuntutan-demo-bem-ui-hingga-ugm-hari-ini-apa-saja-?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Kompas: Students begin protest at Tugu Tani (Indonesian)](https://megapolitan.kompas.com/read/2026/10/20/16024341/bem-ui-mulai-demo-2-tahun-prabowo-gibran-di-tugu-tani-massa-angkat-tiga?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Batam News Asia: More than 9,000 officers deployed as Prabowo marks two years in office](https://batamnewsasia.com/2026/10/21/indonesia-protests-more-than-9000-officers-deployed-as-prabowo-marks-two-years-in-office/?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Al Jazeera: Indonesians march on parliament to demand crackdown on corruption (Aug. 28, 2026)](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/8/28/indonesians-march-on-parliament-to-demand-crackdown-on-corruption?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Wikipedia (Indonesian): October 2026 protests in Indonesia (compilation of local reports)](https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unjuk%5Frasa%5FOktober%5F2026%5Fdi%5FIndonesia?ref=bullquill.com)
- [Kompas: IHSG closes 5.65% higher on October 20 (Indonesian)](https://money.kompas.com/read/2026/10/20/164922326/ihsg-hari-ini-20-10-ditutup-menguat-565-persen-ke-level-527889?ref=bullquill.com)
- [AFP via France 24: Indonesian stocks dive 11% as MSCI weighs reclassification](https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20261016-indonesian-stocks-dive-11-as-msci-weighs-market-reclassification?ref=bullquill.com)