August 28 Student Protest at DPR Building Turns Chaotic

August 28, 2025 | 05:44 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Students' protest in front of the House of Representatives (DPR) building on Gatot Subroto Street, Central Jakarta, on Thursday afternoon, August 28, 2025, ended in violence. According to Tempo's on-the-ground observations, protesters from various universities began throwing bottles at the DPR complex around 2 p.m.

They also threw firecrackers, bamboo, and used tires towards the front gate of the DPR. The protesters also set tires on fire and damaged surveillance cameras. Among them, the continuous shouts of their demand, "Disband DPR, disband DPR," they shouted in unison.

The police guarding the DPR complex repeatedly urged the protesters to express their aspirations in an orderly manner. "We urge all participants to convey their opinions in an orderly manner, refrain from damaging and burning," said a police officer through a loudspeaker. However, the students ignored the call.

The demonstration in front of the DPR building has been ongoing since Thursday morning, August 28, 2025. Initially, the protesters were from labor unions, including the Workers' Union Coalition and the Labor Party. However, the labor protesters dispersed around 12 p.m.

Nevertheless, the wave of protests continued. This time, the protesters crowding the front of the DPR building were students. They filled the street in front of the DPR building.

The masses from various universities demanded the disbandment of DPR, the enactment of the Asset Seizure Bill, and the government to be free from corruption, oligarchy, and dynastic politics. They also rejected the commercialization of education, demanded the withdrawal of excessive allowances for DPR members, and called for an end to all forms of criminalization.

Subsequently, around 3:30 p.m., the police began to push back the crowd with tear gas. The protesters who had initially held their ground in front of the DPR gate scattered. Some of them retreated towards Semanggi Bridge, still on Gatot Subroto Street.

The tug-of-war between the crowd and the police lasted for about 20 minutes in the Gatot Subroto Street area, near the Semanggi area. Then the protesters retaliated by throwing water bottles, bamboo, and firecrackers at the police tear gas and fire.

Here, the police remained on guard with multiple layers of security. Gatot Subroto Street was also closed off. Then, the clash between protesters and police moved towards the Pemuda Gate Street. As of this evening, the unrest is still ongoing around the DPR building.

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