G. K. Goh, Jakarta – Indonesian police fired teargas to disperse a total of 500 student protesters in two separate locations in Jakarta on Thursday in the latest demonstrations over a hefty fuel price hike. The increase at the weekend, by an average 30 percent, has triggered several protests in major cities across the troubled archipelago.

In one incident, police fired volleys of tear gas at 300 students from a Jakarta university after the protesters showered them with rocks. One policeman also shot at the students, although it was unclear if he was using rubber bullets or blanks.

Witnesses of the first incident said 200 students had to run to a separate campus to take shelter when police moved in but they returned to the streets after police pulled back. Earlier, the students burned tyres near a petrol station and blocked a major thoroughfare. No injuries were reported in either incident.

President Abdurrahman Wahid has warned police not to use excessive force in dealing with the protests, which have not reached the level of demonstrations over fuel hikes in 1998 that helped bring down former President Suharto.

Bus drivers this week also went on strike after the fuel price rise, forcing local authorities to allow them to increase fares. Raising fuel prices has always been politically risky in poverty-stricken Indonesia where the majority of people depend on cheap public transport.