Medan – A wave of solidarity actions over the death of motorcycle taxi driver Affan Kurniawan in Jakarta yesterday and protests against the House of Representatives' (DPR) lavish allowances became heated in the North Sumatra city of Medan on Friday August 29, with protesters setting fire to a mobile police traffic post on Jalan Jenderal Ahmad Yani.
According to CNN Indonesia's monitoring, the fire grew and completely engulfed the police post. At the time of the incident, cheers could be heard from the crowd expressing their anger at the policy to increase DPR members' allowances.
The crowd has so far refused to disperse. They have concentrated at several strategic points, such as on Jalan Imam Bonjol, Jalan Kejaksaan, Jalan Balai Kota and Jalan Jenderal Ahmad Yani.
They have chanted slogans to express their disappointment with the DPR members. Clashes between the protesters and police were inevitable. Police also arrested several demonstrators deemed to have incited the disturbances.
Earlier, the crowd pelted police officers with firecrackers, stones and water bottles. The action took place near the North Sumatra Regional House of Representative (DPRD) building on Jalan Imam Bonjol. The crowd was dominated by teenagers carrying national red and white flags and One Piece flags.
The police setup multiple layers of security along with officers equipped with shields. The police were forced to use water cannons to disperse the crowd. The crowd however counterattacked.
Up until now, the area remains under tight security to prevent further actions. Protests have occurred not only in Medan but also in various other regions since Tuesday August 26. (fnr/isn)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Demo Tunjangan DPR di Medan Mencekam, Pos Polisi Dibakar".]
