Full Breakdown
Indonesian Student Protests Prompt Joint Indonesia-Singapore Task Force on Forest-Fire Accountability
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In this breakdown
01
Core Event: Nationwide Demonstrations and Bilateral Action
On October 28, hundreds of university students and civil-society groups marched in Jakarta and other cities demanding that President Prabowo Subianto declare the Sumatra and Kalimantan forest fires a national disaster, halt spending on the free-school-meals programme, and act against the haze reaching Malaysia and Singapore. The same week Indonesia and Singapore announced a joint task force to investigate and hold companies responsible, linking financial-intelligence sharing with cross-border evidence gathering.
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Background & Context
Severe El Niño conditions have dried peatlands, creating the worst haze episode in eleven years. Slash-and-burn clearing and prolonged drought have ignited millions of hectares of forest, producing trans-boundary smoke that threatens public health and wildlife, especially orangutans on Borneo and Sumatra. The crisis has intensified public anger over rising living costs and perceived government inaction.
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Timeline
- October 20 – Activists climb Jakarta’s Welcome Monument and unfurl climate-action banners.
- October 27 – Foreign Minister Arrmanatha Nasir and Singapore Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan announce the joint task force in Jakarta.
- October 28 – Student protests erupt in Jakarta, Makassar, Bandung and other cities.
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Data & Statistics
- 71,000 ground personnel and 51 aerial units deployed across priority provinces.
- 15 aircraft are conducting cloud-seeding over Central/South Kalimantan and South Sumatra.
- Satellite analysis by the Nusantara Atlas project estimates 1.9 million ha burned nationwide between January and September 2026.
- BNPB received 1.08 trillion rupiah this year for emergency response, plus 4.62 trillion rupiah in ready-to-use funds.
- The Ministry of Forestry has imposed sanctions on 32 companies; six firms in Central Kalimantan have had operating permits suspended.
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Official Statements & Responses
- The presidential communications office said it has prosecuted companies linked to the fires, sent aid to haze-stricken provinces, and will continue monitoring the situation.
- President Prabowo Subianto ordered tougher action, including revoking permits of repeat offenders and holding foreign firms accountable.
- Arrmanatha Nasir emphasized that “Indonesians are the first victims” and highlighted the task force as a mechanism to “follow the money trail” of companies profiting from burning forests.
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Verbatim Quotes
- “We are amplifying the voices of the public who are urging the Prabowo-Gibran administration to acknowledge the climate crisis, which is increasingly degrading people’s quality of life,” — Jeanny Sirait, Greenpeace Indonesia.
- “No border should shield those who profit from burning our forests,” — Arrmanatha Nasir, Indonesian Foreign Minister.
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On-the-Ground Reports
Ezra Al Barra of the University of Padjadjaran described the fires as “our collective anger,” noting participants came from regions beyond Jakarta. Demonstrators also called for an end to the free-meals scheme, which they say inflates state spending at the expense of disaster mitigation.
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What's Next
The joint Indonesia-Singapore task force will be formalised in the coming weeks under the ASEAN Agreement on Transboundary Haze Pollution and will coordinate with BNPB and the Ministry of Forestry. Continued student mobilisations are expected as the haze persists and cost-of-living pressures mount.