Protest at Yogyakarta Police Headquarters Subsides, Three Students Returned to Universities

Jakarta (ANTARA) – The Yogyakarta Regional Police (Polda DIY) has confirmed that the situation at the Polda DIY headquarters on Tuesday evening has returned to normal following unrest during a protest related to the alleged assault of a teenager by a member of the Mobile Brigade (Brimob) in Tual, Maluku. According to the Head of Public Relations (Kabidhumas) of Polda DIY, Commissioner Pol. Ihsan, the three students who were briefly detained during the unrest have also been returned to their respective university administrations after coordination. “We regret that the demonstration ended in unrest and resulted in damage to the eastern fence of the Polda headquarters. However, overall, the situation was brought under control by officers on the ground,” said Ihsan, according to a written statement received in Jakarta on Wednesday. He stated that the demonstration, which initially began as a peaceful expression of aspirations, ended in unrest, accompanied by damage to facilities at the Polda DIY headquarters. Despite the escalation of the situation with an anarchist crowd, Ihsan assured that the police officers on duty continued to prioritise persuasive measures and patience. Local wisdom and Javanese cultural values were also prioritised in handling the situation, he said. Furthermore, the Kabidhumas of Polda DIY stated that his team did not use tear gas when dispersing the protesters, and information stating otherwise is untrue. “We would like to emphasise that during the security operation, officers were not equipped with weapons. The sounds heard at the location came from firecrackers brought by the protesters,” said Commissioner Pol. Ihsan. After the escalation subsided, the situation in front of the Polda DIY headquarters is now reported to be safe and under control. Traffic flow has fully resumed, and the security and public order (kamtibmas) in the DIY region is in a conducive state. He also expressed appreciation to the people of Yogyakarta, including the Jaga Warga community, who worked together with the authorities to maintain kamtibmas. Ihsan stated that he understands the public’s concern over the alleged assault by a Brimob member in Tual, which was the background for the demonstration at the Polda DIY headquarters, and he expressed condolences to the victim’s family. “We from Polda DIY express our deepest condolences to the victim’s family regarding the incident that occurred in Tual, Maluku. We hope that the deceased will be accepted for his good deeds, and that the family left behind will be given strength and resilience,” said Commissioner Pol. Ihsan. Following a 14-hour ethics hearing that ended early Tuesday (February 24), the Maluku Regional Police officially dismissed Bripda Mesias Viktor Siahaya (MS), a Brimob member suspected of allegedly assaulting a madrasah tsanawiyah (MTs) student, AT (14), resulting in his death on Thursday (February 19) early morning. Copyright © ANTARA 2026 It is strictly prohibited to take content, crawl or automatically index for AI on this website without written permission from the ANTARA News Agency.