The Obstacles UI Students Faced Before Their Latest Jakarta Protest
UI students faced canceled transport, alleged intimidation and police barricades before their August 18 Jakarta protest was stopped at Dukuh Atas.
Before the University of Indonesia Student Executive Board (BEM UI) could proceed with their protest on August 18, 2026, they faced a series of obstacles in Jakarta. The first challenge was the cancellation of a command vehicle, rendering the planned transportation for demonstrators unavailable. BEM UI had initially contacted six such vehicles to support the protest, only to find none usable.
One driver claimed he was pressured by certain parties to avoid transporting students, fearing job loss. As a result, the students had to improvise and create a makeshift command vehicle.
Additionally, 24 Kopaja minibuses intended for transportation could not operate. This issue was attributed to alleged pressure from various institutions on both the vehicles and their drivers. However, Hafidz did not specify which institutions were involved or provide evidence of this alleged pressure.
Furthermore, other student organizations allegedly faced intimidation to discourage them from joining the demonstration. Authorities reportedly visited campuses to threaten students, and Hafidz received information about threats to revoke Indonesia Smart College Cards (KIP-K), a government scholarship program, at one campus. Despite these obstacles, the students eventually chartered 36 public minivans to reach the Hotel Indonesia Roundabout, the protest's destination.
However, they were stopped by a police barricade and could not proceed further to the HI Roundabout.
Written by urgent.news from Tempo.co English's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
