The Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) has officially\nfiled a lawsuit against politician Zulfan Lindan and PT Temukan\nPerspektif Indonesia\u2014the company that oversees the media outlet Total\nPolitik\u2014at the South Jakarta District Court for alleged unlawful acts.\nThe lawsuit was formally registered by PDIP cadre Abdul Rohman on\nTuesday, 23 June 2026.<\/p>\n
The suit was triggered by a statement from Zulfan Lindan accusing the\nparty, whose symbol is a white-snouted bull, of deliberately attacking\nthe government by engaging in the mobilisation of a massive wave of\ndemonstrations in August 2025.<\/p>\n
PDIP Central Executive Board Chairman Ronny Talapessy asserted that\nZulfan\u2019s accusations were completely irresponsible and unverified. \u201cThat\nis why we are taking this legal step as our legal right. This is\nimportant so that we are more careful in issuing statements, especially\nspeculative statements that cannot be verified and are more sensational\nin nature,\u201d Ronny said when contacted on Thursday, 16 July 2026.<\/p>\n
Before bringing the case to court, PDIP claimed to have sent a formal\nwarning to the defendants. They also filed a complaint with the Press\nCouncil and attached a right of reply for Total Politik to publish.\nHowever, PDIP assessed that Total Politik and Zulfan did not fulfil\ntheir obligations as recommended by the Press Council.<\/p>\n
Zulfan Lindan and Total Politik founder Budi Adiputro had not\nresponded to confirmation messages sent via WhatsApp and Instagram at\nthe time this report was filed.<\/p>\n
Flashback: The Docket of the August 2025 Demonstrations<\/p>\n
The wave of protests in August 2025 stemmed from public opposition to\nseveral government and House of Representatives (DPR) policies, one of\nwhich was a planned increase in parliamentary allowances. Public tension\nescalated further following the tragic death of an online motorcycle\ntaxi driver who was run over by a tactical vehicle belonging to the\nMobile Brigade Corps amid the demonstrations.<\/p>\n
Here is the timeline and key points related to the August 2025\ndemonstrations:<\/p>\n
The issue surfaced after House Commission I member TB Hasanuddin\nrevealed that the total income of a DPR member could reach Rp100 million\nper month, or around Rp3 million per day. One component of the increase\ncame from a housing allowance replacing official residences, which\nreached approximately Rp50 million. This policy drew sharp public\ncriticism for being perceived as lacking empathy during an economic\ncrisis. The wave of protests even led to calls for the dissolution of\nthe DPR. Responding to these demands, the then-Deputy Chairman of House\nCommission III, Ahmad Sahroni, sparked controversy by labelling those\ncalling for the DPR\u2019s dissolution as \u201cidiots.\u201d<\/p>\n
Monday, 25 August 2025: Thousands of protesters from the\nAll-Indonesia Student Executive Board, labour unions, students, and\nonline motorcycle taxi drivers gathered at the DPR\/MPR building in\nJakarta. As the afternoon progressed, the situation turned tense.\nOfficers fired tear gas, inner-city toll roads and commuter line\nservices were paralysed, and several police posts were vandalised.\nHundreds of demonstrators were arrested.<\/p>\n
Thursday, 28 August 2025: Mass escalation peaked again, led by labour\nunion groups demanding labour reforms. That evening, a tragic incident\noccurred in Pejompongan, Central Jakarta. Affan Kurniawan, a 21-year-old\nonline motorcycle taxi driver who was delivering food, was fatally run\nover by a Brimob tactical vehicle.<\/p>\n
Friday, 29 August 2025: News of Affan\u2019s death spread widely, igniting\ncollective anger nationwide.<\/p>\n
The demonstrations spread to more than 20 major cities across\nIndonesia. In several regions, the actions resulted in the burning of\npublic facilities. In Makassar, the protest on 29 August 2025 escalated\ninto a major riot. The Makassar City DPRD building was set ablaze,\nresulting in the deaths of three people: Syaiful Akbar, Muhammad Akbar\nBasri, and Sarinawati. Additionally, an online motorcycle taxi driver\nnamed Rusmadiansyah was killed by the mob after being accused of being a\nstate intelligence agent. In Manokwari, protests broke out in rejection\nof the transfer of four political prisoners from Sorong to Makassar.<\/p>\n
Following the series of actions that continued until 1 September\n2025, civil society groups formulated a manifesto titled \u201cThe 17+8\nPeople\u2019s Demands,\u201d which encapsulated popular aspirations circulating on\nsocial media. Two main points of these demands were: a call for\nPresident Prabowo to withdraw the military from civilian security duties\nand guarantee no criminalisation of activists and demonstrators; and a\ndemand that the DPR freeze the salary and allowance increases and cancel\nthe provision of new facilities, including pension benefits. Responding\nto the massive public pressure, Deputy Speaker of the DPR Sufmi Dasco\nAhmad stated that the provision of housing allowances for parliament\nmembers was officially halted as of 31 August 2025. Dasco also pledged\nthat the parliament would conduct a comprehensive evaluation of all DPR\nmember allowance components.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pdip-sues-zulfan-lindan-over-accusations-of-involvement-in-august-2025-protests-1784260482", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }