Indonesia's August 2025 protests: what accountability looks like so far

Eleven people died in connection with the protests that swept Indonesia in late August 2025, according to the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM). Police data cited by the country's human rights institutions show at least 2,093 children were arrested. Of the seven police officers linked to the death of a ride-hailing driver in Jakarta, one was dismissed, one was demoted and two were ordered to apologise. Three members of the House of Representatives were suspended by its ethics council.

Fifteen months later, those formal decisions make up most of the public accountability record. This analysis sets out what the official bodies decided, what is still pending, and what voters can check. It draws on the records kept on our issue page, August 2025 protests in Indonesia.

How the protests escalated

The protests began over lawmakers' pay and allowances. On 28 August 2025, Affan Kurniawan, a 21-year-old ride-hailing driver, was killed when a Brimob tactical vehicle hit him during a protest in Central Jakarta, The Jakarta Post reported. His death set off demonstrations across the country.

The official casualty figures

Komnas HAM initially reported at least 10 deaths in the unrest. On 12 September 2025 it formed an independent fact-finding team with five other national human rights bodies, Katadata reported: Komnas Perempuan, the child protection commission KPAI, the witness protection agency LPSK, the Ombudsman and the national disability commission KND.

On 7 November 2025, Komnas HAM commissioner Saurlin Siagian said the death toll had risen to 11, Investortrust reported. Nine people died during protests on 25, 28, 29, 30 and 31 August 2025 in several regions. Two more were identified from burned remains found in the ACC building in Kwitang, Jakarta.

The six institutions presented their findings on 20 April 2026, after monitoring from 27 August 2025 to 27 January 2026 in 20 provinces, ANTARA reported. They found indications of widespread human rights violations and said security forces tended to use excessive force, with patterns too consistent to be treated as isolated incidents. Police data cited in the report showed at least 2,093 children were arrested, and more than 300 faced legal proceedings, CNA Indonesia reported. Komnas HAM chair Anis Hidayah said suspected perpetrators should face criminal proceedings, "not only ethics processes". The report was sent to the president, the House and relevant ministries.

Ethics decisions about officers

The police ethics commission moved quickly on the officers in the vehicle that killed Affan Kurniawan.

• On 3 September 2025 it dismissed Cosmas Kaju Gae dishonourably for a serious ethics breach. He was in the passenger seat of the Brimob vehicle, The Jakarta Post reported. A police spokesperson said on 10 September 2025 that he had appealed, ANTARA reported.
• On 4 September 2025 it sanctioned the driver, Rohmat, with a seven-year demotion and 20 days of special detention, declaring his conduct reprehensible, Kompas TV reported.
• On 29 and 30 September 2025 it ordered two more officers in the vehicle, Briptu Danang Setiawan and Aipda M Rohyani, to apologise orally before the commission and in writing to police leadership, and placed them in special detention, Katadata reported. Three further officers had not yet faced hearings at that point.

On 26 September 2025, Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra said the deputy police chief had assured him the case would proceed to criminal charges in a general court, Investortrust reported. In the sources reviewed for this analysis, we found no published criminal verdict over Affan Kurniawan's death, and no published outcome of the dismissal appeal.

What the House decided about allowances

On 5 September 2025, Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad announced that House leaders had agreed to stop members' Rp50 million monthly housing allowance from 31 August 2025 and to suspend overseas working visits from 1 September 2025, except for state invitations, ANTARA reported. He said the House would also cut other allowances and facilities after an evaluation, including electricity, telephone, communication and transport allowances, and would strengthen transparency. The decision responded to the "17+8" public demands, which included a freeze on pay and allowance increases and regular publication of lawmakers' pay.

The ethics council's rulings on members

On 5 November 2025, the House ethics council (MKD) ruled on five members whose parties had deactivated them during the protests, CNN Indonesia and NU Online reported:

• Ahmad Sahroni (NasDem) was found to have breached the code of ethics and suspended for six months without financial rights. The council said his response to calls to dissolve the House should have used appropriate and prudent wording.
• Eko Patrio (PAN) was suspended for four months without financial rights over a social media parody responding to criticism of lawmakers' pay.
• Nafa Urbach (NasDem) was suspended for three months without financial rights over her statement on lawmakers' housing allowances.
• Adies Kadir (Golkar) was found not to have breached the code and was reinstated.
• Surya Utama, known as Uya Kuya, was found not to have breached the code and was reinstated. The council called him a victim of false reporting.

The suspensions ran from late August 2025, when the parties deactivated the members. These rulings are recorded on each member's profile in our officials directory.

What the record shows

• The formal sanctions issued so far are administrative or ethical: a dismissal, a demotion, apologies and detention for officers, and fixed-term suspensions for three lawmakers.
• The House reversed the housing allowance that triggered the protests within days and announced further cuts after an evaluation.
• The human rights institutions concluded that the handling of the protests showed indications of widespread violations and called for criminal follow-up.
• Official death counts changed over time, from at least 10 to 11, as remains were identified.

What remains open

The criminal track is the largest gap. A minister said in September 2025 that the case over Affan Kurniawan's death would go to a general court, but the sources we reviewed do not report a trial or verdict. The result of the dismissal appeal has not been published in those sources either. It is not yet clear how the government and the House have acted on the April 2026 recommendations, or whether the additional allowance cuts announced in September 2025 were carried out in full.

What to watch

For voters: check how your representatives voted on allowances and how they responded to the ethics rulings. Each member's formal record, including ethics decisions, is on the officials directory, and connections between institutions and people are mapped on the intelligence page.

Court steps: any indictment or verdict in the case over Affan Kurniawan's death, and the outcome of the dismissal appeal.

Follow-up on the report: whether the president and the House respond formally to the human rights institutions' findings, including on the arrests of children.

Misinformation: when students protested again on 10 November 2026, a real video of President Prabowo Subianto's appeal for calm from the 2025 protests circulated as if it were new. Kompas.com rated the framing misleading. Our claims page tracks such checks.