Indonesia protest blaze kills 3

A fire started by protesters at a council building in eastern Indonesia killed at least three people, a local official said Saturday, after demonstrations across the country following the death of a man hit by a police vehicle.

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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 in earlier rallies against low wages and financial perks for lawmakers.

Protests in Makassar, the biggest city on the eastern island of Sulawesi, descended into chaos outside the provincial and local city council buildings, which were both set on fire as demonstrators hurled rocks and Molotov cocktails.

Three people were killed as a result of the fire at the Makassar city council, its secretary Rahmat Mappatoba told AFP.

“They were trapped in the burning building,” he said, accusing protesters of igniting the blaze.

“Usually during a demonstration, protesters only throw rocks or burn a tire in front of the office. They never stormed into the building or burned it.”

Two workers at the city council died at the scene and a third person, a civil servant, died in hospital.