IDNEWSNOW.COM, Jakarta – Jakarta Metro Police Traffic Director Sr. Comr. Sambodo Purnomo Yogo said at least 40 high school students willing to join the demonstration against the Omnibus Law on Job Creation in front of the DPR Building and the State Palace were detained.
The police, Sambodo said, feared the students would cause a riot during the protest that would be staged by workers and university students.
“It is feared that they are an anarchic group who often cause riots in several cities because they have only one goal, which is to destroy,” said Sambodo on Thursday, October 8.
He said the students were arrested in different locations, such as Pancoran, Palmerah, Asia Africa, and Patal Senayan. They had been at these locations since last night, he added.
Based on the police preliminary investigation, they came wearing black shirts to meet the invitations circulated on social media platforms. “They have no clear goals [for attending the protest]. So it is better to secure them first rather than letting them mess up, provoke, or attack officers. We will hold rapid tests on all of them,” Sambodo said.
Posters circulated on social media called on students of vocational high schools or STM to join demonstrations protesting the Omnibus Law on Job Creation before the DPR Building in Senayan, Jakarta on Wednesday, October 7, at 1 p.m. A hashtag #STMMELAWAN or ‘STM Fights’ became a trending topic on Twitter.
Previously, National Police Chief General Idham Azis issued a telegram dated October 2, 2020, banning mass demonstrations amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read also: 2,500 Brimob Personnel Deployed to Secure Omnibus Law Protest in Jakarta
M JULNIS FIRMANSYAH
