Hundreds Protest Prabowo in Jakarta Over 2 Million Burned Hectares as Approval Sinks to 44.5%
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Oct 29
Hundreds Protest Prabowo in Jakarta Over 2 Million Burned Hectares as Approval Sinks to 44.5%
3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Oct 29
Summary
Hundreds of protesters rallied in Jakarta on Wednesday—the second such demonstration in a week—demanding President Prabowo Subianto declare Indonesia’s fires a national disaster.
Nearly 2 million hectares have burned in Indonesia’s worst fire season in a decade, toxic haze has spread across the region, and four volunteer firefighters were killed this month, fueling anger over the government’s response.
The government said it welcomed the protests, had deployed 70,000 firefighting personnel and was investigating companies and individuals suspected of starting the fires.
Broader frustration has deepened around Prabowo’s troubled free-meals program, after a June corruption arrest and food-poisoning incidents; a poll this month found 62% of Indonesians oppose the scheme.
Prabowo’s approval rating fell to 44.5%—the lowest for any Indonesian president in 20 years of polling—as a weak rupiah, fuel queues and an MSCI downgrade threat add to fears of wider instability.