A Protest in the Life of a Young Political Prisoner After Unrest

In late August 2025, workers, students, and poor people filled the streets of Jakarta and other cities across Indonesia in large protests. They demanded fairer pay and lower taxes, driven by anger over the sharp increase in legislators’ allowances. The public was dissatisfied because the economy was getting worse and the government was not listening. Many lost their jobs, and food and education prices rose. The protests across Indonesia at the end of August 2025 began in Pati Regency, Central Java Province, after the regent announced a 250 percent increase in property taxes, prompting thousands of people to take to the streets on August 10.

All protests led to at least 6,719 arrests, according to the February 2026 Fact-Finding Commission report. As of March 2026, around 700 remained in legal proceedings, and some were put on trial in different cities. Many were charged for social media posts seen as inflammatory. More than 10 people died because of the effects of excessive force, leading the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) to call for a full investigation into every reported violation of international human rights law, including how security forces acted. But the Indonesian government has no feedback to the OHCHR call.

Brutal Arrest

An elementary school teacher, Salman Alfarisi, went to the front of the House of Representatives building complex on Sunday, August 31, 2025. The protest had been going on for six days. The crowds were growing, with violence escalating in several other cities. Previously, he had only watched the events live on TikTok, but that day, ByteDance’s platform suspended the live-streaming feature in Indonesia.

A mototaxi driver, Affan Kurniawan, passing by the demonstration, was killed after being run over by an armored police tactical vehicle on Thursday, August 28, 2025. The victim was 21 years old – the same age as Alfarisi. The suspension of the TikTok stream sparked curiosity, and the victim’s death drew Alfarisi to the crowd. In front of the building, he took a video.

After returning from the House complex, he was suddenly arrested by dozens of unknown men who said nothing to identify themselves. He was immediately attacked and beaten. ‘It was them, the police,’ he later told FairPlanet. He and four others were taken to the hall of the Jakarta Regional Police Headquarters, where the 58 people arrested that night were also gathered.

Alfarisi was kept at the police station for 36 hours. He was questioned without his family or lawyer there, while an investigator forced him to admit to throwing rocks and bamboo sticks at the police and attacking them. He said he never threw anything at the police. He said that even during questioning, detainees still experienced torture. After being held for two months, he and 20 others were moved to prison. Two weeks later, they went to court at the Central Jakarta District Court.

Detention and Trial

The trial featured numerous irregularities, according to the witness who reported the incident. The video he took was not shown during the trial. The evidence presented was fabricated. According to the interrogation report, Alfarisi confessed after an investigator threatened him: ‘Just confess. If you don’t, you’ll die here. No one will know.’ Fearing for his life, he signed a confession to charges he says were fabricated.

He received a sentence of 10 months’ probation, meaning he will not serve time in prison but will be supervised throughout that period. During the year, he is required to report to the prosecutor’s office monthly. After the court decided his case, Alfarisi joined the Political Prisoners’ Union (Serikat Tahanan Politik Indonesia/STPI). They are victims of the August 2025 demonstrations.

According to Ukasyah Aqillah, a fellow STPI member, they rely on data from the Fact-Finding Commission regarding detainees and arrests, which found 706 political prisoners in legal proceedings and 506 found guilty as of February 14, 2026.

‘This situation is already evil. During the August 2025 demonstrations, we were hit hard. That’s what’s really being disrupted: solidarity. If we don’t fight together with the same ethics of caring, we will be more easily destroyed by those in power. It’s already starting now,’ said Bivitri Susanti, a law lecturer and human rights activist, in a recent discussion organized by STPI.

She added that when democracy is shut down, authoritarianism actively silences civil society. That is precisely the situation facing Southeast Asia’s largest archipelagic nation.

The Road to Justice

A Fact-Finding Commission made up of various civil society elements conducted an independent investigation. They found a common pattern of arrests that failed to meet the standards of legality, procedure, and accountability set out in the criminal code, human rights law, and Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Although FairPlanet reached out, the National Police Headquarters has yet to respond to any comments. Similarly, neither the Ministry of Human Rights nor the Directorate General of Corrections has provided any replies.

‘It’s crucial to evaluate how our criminal justice system ensures judicial officials adopt a human rights perspective, especially for vulnerable groups like children, women, and victims with disabilities who face legal proceedings without adequate capacity,’ said Anis Hidayah, Chair of the National Human Rights Commission, in an interview with FairPlanet.

She acknowledged that people are being prosecuted for the legitimate expression of opinions — actions she said are protected under Indonesia’s laws and constitution.

‘I think we have a lot of homework to do: how to ensure the strengthening of the democratic ecosystem and building a safe civil space for opinion and expression in Indonesia still facing many challenges,’ she added.

According to Susanti, efforts to strengthen solidarity among the community would clearly be better, as the current problem lies in a political configuration that is already systemically damaged. ‘So, on this front, we don’t know whether changes within the government in the next 10-20 years will have a significant impact on people,’ she said. On the other hand, public participation is low, and freedom of expression and opinion still face several challenges, resulting in a sharp decline in Indonesia’s democracy.