Prabowo Again Asks Journalists to Leave During Speech Before University Rectors

President Prabowo Subianto delivered a speech at the closing of the Science, Technology, and Industry Convention in Jakarta on Sunday, 28 June 2026. During his address to the thousands of lecturers in attendance, Prabowo declared that his speaking session was closed to journalists.

Prabowo initially spoke for around 20 minutes whilst reporters were still in the room. He opened his speech by discussing various government policies and his hopes for the academic world.

After completing the initial part of his speech, Prabowo was informed by one of his assistants that journalists were still present. The former Defence Minister then asked the journalists to leave the hall before continuing his address. The Gerindra Party chairman invited the reporters to have coffee outside. ‘Respectfully, I invite the journalists to have coffee,’ Prabowo said.

The Science, Technology, and Industry Convention (KSTI) attended by Prabowo took place from Friday to Sunday, 26-28 June 2026. The President attended both the opening and closing of the event, which invited 2,600 lecturers, including professors, deans, and rectors.

On Friday, during the opening of KSTI 2026, Prabowo presented material for nearly five hours to the academics. The briefing was delivered openly starting around 4 p.m. WIB at the Jakarta Convention Center. After speaking for 30 minutes, Prabowo also asked journalists to leave the room and continued his speech behind closed doors. ‘Respectfully, I invite the journalists to have coffee outside, I am sure Mr Brian (Minister of Higher Education, Science, and Technology Brian Yuliarto) has prepared some excellent coffee,’ Prabowo said on Friday.

The Gerindra Party chairman said he wanted to speak frankly with the academics present and did not want the session to be covered by the media. ‘Journalists, with all due respect, members of the media, today I want to speak from the heart to the professors,’ he stated. Prabowo said he would provide the participants with the data and facts at his disposal.

The forum titled ‘National Gathering’ attended by Prabowo is part of the Indonesian Science, Technology, and Industry Convention. The event was organised by the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, and Technology. KSTI is an initiative of President Prabowo that was first held at the Bandung Institute of Technology in August 2025.