Jakarta – Thousands of students, workers, activists and farmers took to the streets across the country on Thursday to protest the plan to raise fuel prices by up to 80 percent, while motorists queued up at gas stations before the new prices take effect.
Carrying banners denouncing the fuel price hike, thousands of protesters from several student and worker organizations marched from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta to the front gate of the Presidential Palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara.
"The plan to raise fuel prices shows that Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Jusuf Kalla do not side with the people as they promised before they were elected," said Achmad of the Alliance of People's Demand (ARM), which claimed to field some 1,000 workers.
ARM arrived at the Presidential Palace at around 12 noon and were later joined by thousands of members of the Indonesian Youth Association, the Students Alliance, Youth for Reform and several other worker's groups.
Around 100 people wearing Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) attributes also joined the rally, which proceeded peacefully.
Nevertheless, 5,000 police officers were in attendance at the protest. They also isolated the protesters by closing several accesses into and out of the Presidential Palace, causing traffic congestion along Jl. Veteran and Jl. Pecenongan in Central Jakarta.
"We have pulled our officers in Semanggi and the House of Representatives to three points along Jl. Sudirman and Jl. Thamrin as protesters concentrate along that line," City police Chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani said.
At 2:30 p.m., the protesters began to leave the Presidential Palace and by around 3 p.m. the situation had returned to normal.
Traffic jams, however, were spotted around gasoline stations across the city as motorists raced against time to fill their tanks before the government announced the price hike.
Lines of vehicles up to a kilometer in length formed at fuel stations in Kramat, Pejompongan and Senen in Central Jakarta, Jl. Lap. Ros in South Jakarta, triggering traffic jams in those areas. A gas station in Senen and another in Petamburan closed their premises on Thursday, putting up notices saying they had run out of Premium fuel.
Police said they were investigating whether the gas stations deliberately closed their pumps in order to stockpile fuel for higher profits after the price increases were announced. Anti-price hike protests and long queues at gasoline stations also took place in Surabaya, East Java, Medan in North Sumatra and Makassar in South Sulawesi.
Despite the protests, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said on Thursday that fuel prices would rise on Oct. 1 as any delay would cause the state to suffer an additional burden of Rp 11.67 trillion (US$1.13 billion) every month.
The amount, he was quoted as saying by presidential spokesman Andi Alfian Malarangeng, was equal to the cost needed to build some 1,000 new school buildings and provide free medication at third-class wards in state hospitals.
"President Susilo has said that there is no going back for this plan. Despite the widespread protests, the government has no other choice than to cut the fuel subsidy by raising fuel prices," he said.
Andi also said that there were indications that the protests were backed up by certain political parties out to overthrow the current government.
"Politicians should be fair and act like statesmen. The protests are obvious and we are allowing them. But, there are several politicians who want to take advantage of the situation for their personal gain," he said.