Jakarta students rally against Prabowo spending, warn of a bankrupt Indonesia

Hundreds of Indonesian students rallied in Jakarta to protest President Prabowo Subianto’s spending priorities and this week’s gasoline price rise, naming the protest “Heading to Bankrupt Indonesia.” They demanded five points: cancel Prabowo’s flagship free meals and village-cooperatives programs, lower fuel and staple-food prices, and end “wasteful” spending. The government defended subsidies and the free meals program as public-health measures and said the protests are democratic, while critics fear expanded military roles could threaten democracy; protesters cited concerns about governance and potential fiscal strain on subsidies amid higher oil prices.