Indonesia protest fire kills 3 people as anger erupts over driver’s death who was hit by a police vehicle.
A fire started by protesters at a council building in eastern Indonesia killed at least three people, a local official said on Saturday, after the death of a man hit by a police vehicle sparked widespread demonstrations.
Southeast Asia’s biggest economy was rocked by protests in major cities, including the capital Jakarta, on Friday after footage spread of a motorcycle taxi driver being run over by a police tactical vehicle during an earlier rally against low wages and financial perks for lawmakers.
The protests are the biggest and most violent of Prabowo Subianto’s presidency, a key test for the ex-general less than a year into his rule.
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Protests in Makassar, the biggest city on the eastern island of Sulawesi, descended into chaos outside the provincial and city council buildings, which were both set on fire as demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails.
Three people were killed as a result of Friday’s Makassar city council fire, its secretary Rahmat Mappatoba told AFP.
“They were trapped in the burning building,” he said, accusing protesters of lighting the blaze.
“Usually during a demonstration, protesters only throw rocks or burn a tyre in front of the office. They never stormed into the building or burned it.”
Two workers died at the scene and a third person, a civil servant, died in hospital.
