Jakarta Police have dispatched 14,000 personnel to secure protests by labor unions rejecting fuel price hikes in Central Jakarta, including in front of the Presidential Palace, on Wednesday.

"As many as 14,000 personnel have been dispatched to secure the protests on fuel, including securing [nearby] gas stations," Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto said.

The Confederation of the All Indonesia Workers Unions (KSPSI) said on Tuesday that they were expected between 25,000 and 30,000 protesters to reject fuel price hikes planned on April 1.

"We will carry the aspirations of laborers and the rest of the public who will feel the impacts of the fuel price hikes," KSPSI president Andi Gani Nena Wea said.

At 11 a.m. on Wednesday, the Jakarta Police Traffic Management Center reported that thousands of protesters had begun marching from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle toward the Presidential Palace.

The government's plan to raise the price of subsidized fuel, following the rises of global crude oil prices, has sparked waves of protests nationwide, mostly organized by student organizations and labor unions. (Antara/JG)