Indonesia police use tear gas near campuses, rights groups criticize security response to protests

Jakarta, Indonesia - Indonesian police have fired tear gas into crowds of protesters near two universities in a major regional city, student bodies and authorities said on Tuesday, Sept. 2, adding new tensions to deadly protests that have rocked the country since last week.

Student bodies of the Islamic University of Bandung, known locally as UNISBA, and nearby Pasundan University, over 140 kilometers west of Jakarta, said on Instagram that authorities fired tear gas canisters into crowds near the campuses on Monday evening.

Local police official Hendra Rochmawan said authorities did not enter the campuses but were trying to break up non-student protesters who were seeking protection inside university grounds, because the crowds were blocking roads in the area.

UNISBA Dean Harits Nu'man echoed the police statement, adding the campus was a medical hub for protesters.

The UNISBA student body said security forces "brutally attacked" the campus, saying the tear gas caused breathing problems for some students and accusing security forces of seeking to silence dissent.

University students have long been regarded as vanguards of Indonesia's democracy, including playing a leading role in the protests that helped topple authoritarian leader President Suharto in 1998. The current president, Prabowo Subianto, was a military leader under Suharto.

The protests started in Jakarta a week ago targeting government spending such as enhanced perks for lawmakers, and have since escalated nationwide, with some rioting and looting, after a police vehicle hit and killed a motorcycle taxi driver.

At least eight people have died in the protests, a senior minister said on Monday. Prabowo has warned the police and the military would stand firm against violent escalations.

International rights groups have criticised the security response to the protests.

"The Indonesian authorities acted irresponsibly by treating the protests as acts of treason or terrorism," said Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy Asia director at the Human Rights Watch, calling for investigations into alleged rights violations by security forces.

Non-profit legal aid group Lokataru Foundation said on Tuesday their director, Delpedro Marhaen, had been arrested by police. The Jakarta police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

(Reporting by Stanley Widianto)