Civil Coalition: Police Brutality Caused August Demonstrations to Turn Violent
Fact-Finding Commission researcher Ravio Patra has revealed that the riots during the August 2025 demonstrations were not caused by protesters. Rather, he said, the unrest escalated following acts of brutality committed by the police.
"If you ask what caused the violence, the riots, the looting, the destruction — it was the brutal actions of police officers that led to the death of a citizen," Ravio said at the Indonesia Corruption Watch office in Jakarta on Friday, 18 February 2026.
He referred to the death of ride-hailing driver Affan Kurniawan, a young man who was killed after being run over by a Brimob (Mobile Brigade) tactical vehicle in the Bendungan Hilir area on 28 August 2025.
According to the Fact-Finding Commission's report, compiled from eyewitness accounts, the police vehicle that struck Affan stopped for approximately seven seconds at 19:28. During that moment, bystanders rushed to surround the Brimob armoured vehicle to urge it to stop. However, the police vehicle instead accelerated, running over Affan.
"That was the moment Affan vomited blood and was taken to Pelni Hospital, but due to traffic congestion was redirected to Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital. There, Affan arrived unconscious but still had a pulse," he said.
Affan was subsequently pronounced dead at 19:58 Western Indonesian Time. This chronology led the commission to conclude that Affan's death constituted a killing.
Affan's death caused demonstrations to escalate dramatically, spreading across dozens of cities. Ravio disclosed that protests were recorded in 49 cities the day after Affan's killing, on 29 August 2025 — an increase of 21 cities from the previous day.
The numbers escalated further on 30 August 2025, with 76 cities holding demonstrations. Protests in dozens of cities also turned violent. In Makassar, South Sulawesi, for instance, four people died and five were injured after becoming trapped in a burning regional parliament building.
Ravio noted that during the first three days, the demonstrations were relatively peaceful with no friction between protesters and security forces. Affan's killing by police, he said, gave other citizens a reason to take to the streets.
"All the ride-hailing drivers joined the protests — they were everywhere. Ordinary citizens who previously had no reason to demonstrate now had a reason because they were angry. Students who had merely been following along also now had a reason," Ravio said.
He explained that the escalation of the August 2025 demonstration riots could have been prevented by the state. However, the state failed to act swiftly and decisively in responding to the loss of a citizen's life due to security force brutality.
"Our data shows the cause of the riots was Affan's killing. It was not because of social media posts, not because of posters, or complaint posts for demonstrators experiencing legal harassment," Ravio said.
The report, titled "The Largest Silencing Operation Against Young People Since Reformasi," was compiled by the Fact-Finding Commission beginning in September and released on 18 February 2026. The report documents the facts behind the August 2025 demonstrations, the escalation of riots, looting, and the pursuit of activists.
The eleven researchers who produced the report include Andrie Yunus, Arif Maulana, Aqwam Fiazmi Hanifan, Fadilah Rahmatan Al Kafi, Khaerul Anwar, M. Islah Satrio, M. Yahya Ihyaroza, Nurkholis Hidayat, Ravio Patra, Rizaldi Ageng Wicaksono, and Vebrina Monicha.
The Fact-Finding Commission examined 115 police investigation reports covering witnesses, suspects, experts, and forensic examinations. The commission then re-verified information from these police reports across 18 cities in eight provinces, including investigations that extended to three countries.
The report's methodology also drew on open-source intelligence, which can be used to discover, analyse, and verify information from publicly accessible sources. The Fact-Finding Commission interviewed at least 63 informants comprising activists, civil society members, university students, secondary school students, labour unions, collectives, lawyers, and various other civil organisations. The interviews sought to establish the roles of various actors before, during, and after the demonstrations. Triangulation of secondary data was also conducted by the commission, using media coverage, witness interviews, and field observations for analysis.
"If you ask what caused the violence, the riots, the looting, the destruction — it was the brutal actions of police officers that led to the death of a citizen," Ravio said at the Indonesia Corruption Watch office in Jakarta on Friday, 18 February 2026.
He referred to the death of ride-hailing driver Affan Kurniawan, a young man who was killed after being run over by a Brimob (Mobile Brigade) tactical vehicle in the Bendungan Hilir area on 28 August 2025.
According to the Fact-Finding Commission's report, compiled from eyewitness accounts, the police vehicle that struck Affan stopped for approximately seven seconds at 19:28. During that moment, bystanders rushed to surround the Brimob armoured vehicle to urge it to stop. However, the police vehicle instead accelerated, running over Affan.
"That was the moment Affan vomited blood and was taken to Pelni Hospital, but due to traffic congestion was redirected to Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital. There, Affan arrived unconscious but still had a pulse," he said.
Affan was subsequently pronounced dead at 19:58 Western Indonesian Time. This chronology led the commission to conclude that Affan's death constituted a killing.
Affan's death caused demonstrations to escalate dramatically, spreading across dozens of cities. Ravio disclosed that protests were recorded in 49 cities the day after Affan's killing, on 29 August 2025 — an increase of 21 cities from the previous day.
The numbers escalated further on 30 August 2025, with 76 cities holding demonstrations. Protests in dozens of cities also turned violent. In Makassar, South Sulawesi, for instance, four people died and five were injured after becoming trapped in a burning regional parliament building.
Ravio noted that during the first three days, the demonstrations were relatively peaceful with no friction between protesters and security forces. Affan's killing by police, he said, gave other citizens a reason to take to the streets.
"All the ride-hailing drivers joined the protests — they were everywhere. Ordinary citizens who previously had no reason to demonstrate now had a reason because they were angry. Students who had merely been following along also now had a reason," Ravio said.
He explained that the escalation of the August 2025 demonstration riots could have been prevented by the state. However, the state failed to act swiftly and decisively in responding to the loss of a citizen's life due to security force brutality.
"Our data shows the cause of the riots was Affan's killing. It was not because of social media posts, not because of posters, or complaint posts for demonstrators experiencing legal harassment," Ravio said.
The report, titled "The Largest Silencing Operation Against Young People Since Reformasi," was compiled by the Fact-Finding Commission beginning in September and released on 18 February 2026. The report documents the facts behind the August 2025 demonstrations, the escalation of riots, looting, and the pursuit of activists.
The eleven researchers who produced the report include Andrie Yunus, Arif Maulana, Aqwam Fiazmi Hanifan, Fadilah Rahmatan Al Kafi, Khaerul Anwar, M. Islah Satrio, M. Yahya Ihyaroza, Nurkholis Hidayat, Ravio Patra, Rizaldi Ageng Wicaksono, and Vebrina Monicha.
The Fact-Finding Commission examined 115 police investigation reports covering witnesses, suspects, experts, and forensic examinations. The commission then re-verified information from these police reports across 18 cities in eight provinces, including investigations that extended to three countries.
The report's methodology also drew on open-source intelligence, which can be used to discover, analyse, and verify information from publicly accessible sources. The Fact-Finding Commission interviewed at least 63 informants comprising activists, civil society members, university students, secondary school students, labour unions, collectives, lawyers, and various other civil organisations. The interviews sought to establish the roles of various actors before, during, and after the demonstrations. Triangulation of secondary data was also conducted by the commission, using media coverage, witness interviews, and field observations for analysis.