Dede Leni Mardianti, Jakarta – Indonesian coalition of civil society organizations and prominent influencers visited the House of Representatives (DPR) building in Senayan, Jakarta, on Thursday afternoon, September 4, 2025. They held a symbolic event to formally submit the "17+8 People's Demands" to parliament.
The group urged lawmakers to fulfill the demands within the public deadline of September 5, 2025. Among the influencers present were Abigail Limuria, Andovi da Lopez, Andhyta F. Utami (Afu), Fathia Izzati, Jerome Polin Sijabat, Da Lopez, and Ferry Irwandi.
Wearing pink and green outfits to represent the "Brave Pink" and "Hero Green" campaigns, they carried banners outlining 17 short-term and 8 long-term demands.
The movement was initiated by Afu, co-founder of the Bijak Memilih platform. Abigail Limuria said their visit was a firm step after previous informal approaches had been ignored. "Although the DPR responded last night, we know promises are one thing, but implementation is another," she said.
Abigail, author of Makanya, Mikir, explained that the coalition had been voicing the 17+8 demands since Monday, September 1, 2025, through social media. On the following day, they also emailed the demands to all 580 DPR members.
"So far, none of the demands have been concretely addressed," she added. "That's why we are here today, to deliver the demands formally and physically, so there is no excuse that the documents were not submitted through official channels."
At 03:00 PM local time, DPR's Public Aspirations Body member Andre Rosiade personally received the document. He promised the demands would be processed. "God willing, we will make transformations for the better, in line with these demands and public expectations," he said after signing the handover.
The 17+8 demands emerged from widespread calls on social media following the mass protests of August 28, 2025. The government was given until September 5, 2025, to meet the 17 short-term demands, while the 8 long-term demands carry a deadline of August 31, 2026.
The 17 short-term demands (deadline: September 5, 2025) include:
1. Form an independent investigation team for victims of violence during the August 28-30 protests, including Affan Kurniawan and Umar Amarudin.
2. End military (TNI) involvement in civilian security operations.
3. Release all detained protesters and stop criminalizing demonstrations.
4. Prosecute commanders and officers who committed acts of violence.
5. End police brutality and enforce existing crowd-control SOPs.
6. Freeze salary and allowance increases for DPR members and revoke new benefits.
7. Publish DPR's budget details (salaries, allowances, facilities) proactively and regularly.
8. Investigate questionable assets of DPR members through the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
9. Push DPR's Ethics Council to act against members who dismiss public aspirations.
10. Political parties must sanction unethical cadres fueling public anger.
11. Publicly commit parties to side with the people during the crisis.
12. Ensure lawmakers engage in dialogue with students and civil society.
13. Enforce discipline to prevent TNI from taking over police functions.
14. A public pledge from the TNI not to intervene in civilian affairs during the democracy crisis.
15. Guarantee decent wages for all workers, including teachers, health workers, laborers, and ride-hailing drivers.
16. Take urgent measures to prevent mass layoffs and protect contract workers.
17. Open dialogue with labor unions on minimum wages and outsourcing.
The 8 long-term demands (deadline: August 31, 2026) include:
1. Comprehensive reform of the DPR.
2. Political party reform and stronger executive oversight.
3. A fairer tax reform plan.
4. Passage and enforcement of the Asset Confiscation Bill targeting corrupt officials.
5. Police reform to ensure professionalism and human rights compliance.
6. Full withdrawal of the TNI to the barracks.
7. Strengthen Komnas HAM and other independent oversight bodies.
8. Review economic and labor policies.