Fury in Jakarta after police vehicle kills delivery rider amid protests

Prabowo calls for thorough investigation as unrest over legislators' allowances spreads

- Arlina Arshad Indonesia Bureau Chief and Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja Indonesia Correspondent

JAKARTA - Grief and fury swept through Indonesia's capital of Jakarta as the family of 21-year-old Mr Affan Kurniawan mourned the death of the young delivery and ride-hailing motorbike rider, who was killed when a police tactical vehicle ploughed into him as a protest in Central Jakarta turned chaotic.

Surrounded by relatives and neighbours, his grief-stricken mother Erlina, whose name has only one word, spoke through her tears to The Straits Times at her family home on Aug 29.

"I want the person who killed my son to get the harshest sanction by the law... He had just ended a food delivery and was about to pick up his next passenger," the 41-year-old housemaid said. "He's the backbone of our family and worked very hard. He had been saving up money from his job to buy land and build a house for us back in our village in Lampung (in South Sumatra)."

The incident occurred during Jakarta's second major protest in a week, fuelled by public anger over generous allowances being offered to legislators.

Protests continued in Jakarta on Aug 29 alongside hundreds of ride-hailing riders who also took part in Mr Affan's funeral, accompanying the hearse in a long procession of motorbikes that wound its way through Central Jakarta to the cemetery. Protesters outside the Jakarta police headquarters set fire to tyres and road barricades they had pulled from nearby. About 10km north, outside the Jakarta police mobile brigade headquarters, tear gas was fired after protesters threw firecrackers at police.

Similar rallies have also spread to other major cities in Indonesia, including Surabaya in East Java and Medan in North Sumatra province.

According to Madam Erlina, on the night of Aug 28, Mr Affan had just dropped off a delivery order when he became trapped in the chaos of a demonstration in Pejompongan, Central Jakarta.

A Brimob paramilitary tactical vehicle sped through the crowd, striking him before accelerating away.