Anger over outgoing President Joko Widodo and his supporters flared in Indonesia on Friday, also after lawmakers canceled an election bill that could have bolstered the president’s influence after he left office in October.
On Thursday night, lawmakers announced they had decided to suspend the measure after thousands of people took to the streets to protest the bill, saying it would undermine democratic principles and competitive elections.
The protests continued on Friday, with protests at the National Election Commission in Jakarta.
The controversial bill was introduced just a day after a groundbreaking ruling by the Constitutional Court on Wednesday.
The Supreme Court relaxed the rules for regional elections, giving smaller parties and more candidates more opportunities to compete.
Previously, political parties or coalitions had to hold at least 20% of the seats in the provincial council or receive 25% of the votes to put forward a candidate. Parties with ties to Joko and his successor, former general Prabowo Subianto, benefited from this.
But on Thursday, lawmakers in parliament, which is dominated by Joko supporters, began drafting a bill to overturn parts of the court decision.
This move was met with outrage and led to nationwide protests.
A leading lawmaker said Thursday night that the bill had been defeated.
“Since the regional elections bill has not yet come into effect, the Constitutional Court ruling applies,” Sufmi Dasco Ahmad, deputy speaker of parliament, told reporters.
