JK on Attack Against Andrie Yunus: Police Must Reveal Motive
Former Vice President Jusuf Kalla has expressed concern over an attack on human rights activist Andrie Yunus. The activist from the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence (Kontras) was assaulted with caustic acid by unknown assailants.
Kalla stated that such an attack should not occur. “Regarding the caustic acid attack, we are naturally first and foremost concerned and regret that this happened,” Kalla said at his residence in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta on Saturday, 14 March 2026.
The Chairman of the Indonesian Mosque Council expressed hope that police would investigate the case seriously. He also recalled a similar incident that befell former KPK investigator Novel Baswedan in April 2017.
According to him, a caustic acid attack is a serious crime. “With the expectation that police truly investigate the case, because this came after the KPK case, Novel Baswedan back then, now it has happened again,” he said.
Kalla stated that police must identify the group carrying out attacks using caustic acid. According to Kalla, police are obliged to investigate their motives.
The former Chairman of Golkar Party believed the attack could be related to the victims’ activities, such as Andrie being a human rights activist and Novel being a KPK investigator at the time. “We need to look at who was harmed and who acted to commit such attacks,” he said.
For now, Kalla said, the motivation and perpetrators of both attacks still need to be determined. “Police must actively investigate this,” said the former two-term vice president.
Andrie Yunus was previously reported to be the victim of a caustic acid attack by unknown persons. Andrie was attacked on Jalan Talang, Central Jakarta, on the evening of Thursday, 12 March 2026 at approximately 23:37 Western Indonesia Time.
Based on Kontras’ chronology, Andrie was riding his motorcycle on Jalan Salemba I - Talang, Central Jakarta, when two perpetrators approached from the opposite direction of Jalan Talang, specifically at Talang Bridge, riding a motorcycle believed to be a Honda Beat automatic from 2016-2021.
The perpetrators were two men, each serving as driver and passenger. “They had the following characteristics: the first perpetrator was the rider wearing a white-blue combination shirt, jeans-like trousers, and a black helmet,” according to Kontras’ statement on Friday, 13 March 2026.
The second perpetrator, the rear passenger, wore a black buff-style face covering mask that covered half his face. He was wearing a dark blue shirt and blue long trousers that were rolled up short and appeared to be made of jeans.
One perpetrator then sprayed caustic acid towards Andrie, hitting parts of his body. Andrie immediately screamed in pain and fell from his motorcycle.
As a result, Andrie sustained serious injuries across his body, particularly on his right and left hands, face, chest, and eyes. Based on examination results, Kontras found no belongings of the victim missing or taken either during or after the incident.
Andrie was immediately taken to the nearest hospital in Jakarta and received emergency medical treatment, particularly on the eye area affected by the liquid. From the examination results, Andrie suffered 24 percent burn injuries.
The incident occurred shortly after Andrie recorded a podcast at the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) office in Menteng, Central Jakarta. The podcast recording titled “Remilitarisation and Judicial Review in Indonesia” was completed at approximately 23:00 Western Indonesia Time.
Kontras Coordinator Dimas Bagus Arya stated that this action was an attempt to silence critical voices in society, particularly human rights defenders. Dimas said the incident must receive immediate attention from various parties, including law enforcement agencies and civil society.
He also called on police to investigate the incident. “Law enforcement must immediately conduct an investigation to uncover the perpetrators and the motive behind the attack,” he said in a written statement.
Furthermore, he also called for the perpetrators to be sentenced to the fullest extent under the attempted murder provision, as referenced in Article 459 of the Criminal Code (KUHP). “Given that the attempt to spray caustic acid on the victim can result in serious fatal injuries leading to death,” he said.