September 19, 2025 | 04:59 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Sixteen activists detained at the Jakarta Metropolitan Police have launched a hunger strike to protest their detention over August 2025 mass demonstrations.
Among them is activist Syahdan Husein from the Gejayan Memanggil movement, who is believed to have initiated the action.
Fellow detainee Khariq Anhar, a student at the University of Riau, said the strike began on September 16 at Syahdan’s urging.
“We are tired of being detained. At Syahdan Husein’s initiative, we started the hunger strike,” Khariq wrote in an open letter shared on several civil society social media accounts on Thursday, September 18.
Khariq noted that while most detainees remain in stable condition, Syahdan’s health is deteriorating. “He has become thin, has difficulty walking, and sometimes faints,” Khariq said, adding that Syahdan called for the release of all political detainees and urged public solidarity.
Syahdan’s sister, Sizigia Pikhansa, told reporters that he had refused food since September 11.
“That means it has been a week as of today,” she said on Wednesday. According to her, police never informed the family of Syahdan’s arrest, nor were they initially allowed to visit, which she said worsened his psychological condition.
Syahdan was arrested in Bali on September 1 and later named a suspect by Jakarta police along with five others. He is widely known as the spokesperson and media coordinator of Gejayan Memanggil.
The six detainees include Syahdan; Delpedro Marhaen, executive director of the Lokataru Foundation; Khariq Anhar; Muzaffar Salim, a Lokataru staff member; Figha Lesmana, a Bung Karno University alumnus; and an individual identified as RAP, who are accused of inciting violence during the August 25 and 28 protests.
Police cited social media activity as part of their evidence, including a post from @lokataru_foundation promoting a complaint center for students facing sanctions for joining the protests. The post read: “Are you a student? Want to protest? Already protested? Threatened with sanctions? Or sanctioned? We fight together! #dontbeafraid” and included a hotline number.
The suspects face charges under Article 160 of the Criminal Code, Article 45A(3) in conjunction with Article 28(3) of the ITE Law, and provisions of the Child Protection Law.
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