Counter-Protesters Disperse Student Demonstration at Yogyakarta Police Headquarters

A group of people claiming to represent the citizens of Yogyakarta dispersed a demonstration involving student elements in front of the Yogyakarta Regional Police Headquarters (Polda DIY) on Tuesday evening, 24 February 2026. According to Tempo’s observations, the group of students who were holding the demonstration by blocking Jalan Ring Road in front of Polda DIY scattered. The group, claiming to represent the citizens of Yogyakarta, arrived carrying wooden and metal batons from the west side. Scroll down to continue reading “Disperse, disperse, disperse! We are from the citizens! Don’t disturb the peace and traffic in Yogyakarta!” shouted the crowd dispersing the demonstration in front of Polda DIY. Some of the student protesters, who initially remained, mostly dispersed, running towards the western side of the Pakuwon Mall. Jalan Ring Road Utara, which had been blocked since 18:00, was reopened at around 20:30. This group of students came to Polda DIY and held a demonstration as a form of protest against the Polri institution following the death of a student in Tual, Maluku, at the hands of a member of the Maluku Mobile Brigade (Brimob) on 19 February 2026. Several shops and malls around Polda DIY chose to close earlier. One of the protesters, Ude, stated that this movement was a culmination of public anger over the act of violence committed by a member of the Brimob Polda Maluku. “There was a 14-year-old boy who was not doing anything wrong, just riding his motorbike, when he was suddenly hit on the head with a helmet and died. The people of Yogyakarta today understand that the problem is not just a few individuals, but the entire institution, so this action is an attempt to express that anger,” said Ude during the demonstration. According to him, this action was spontaneous and fluid, without a stage for speeches or a formal list of demands. “This is a sign of the collapse of trust in the Polri reform efforts that have not yielded results,” he said. They briefly surrounded the area, blocked access to the road, and even tore down the fence of the police station as a form of expression of deep disappointment with the Polri institution. The situation became tense at the eastern fence when the crowd hit the fence until it collapsed, which was met with shouts of “Murderer, murderer, murderer” and the throwing of objects into the courtyard, which had been fitted with barbed wire since the afternoon. Editor’s Choice: Student Dies in Maluku, Protesters: Polri Reform Has No Results