Republic Conference to Be Held Online This Afternoon After UI Cancellation

The Secretary General of the Republic Conference Committee, Yanuar Nugroho, stated that the ‘Konferensi Republik: Jalan Menata Kembali Republik’ will continue via Zoom at 13.00 WIB on Sunday, 28 June 2026. ‘We will immediately hold a working meeting in consolidation,’ he said during a press conference at the University of Indonesia (UI) Salemba campus, Central Jakarta, on Sunday, 28 June 2026. The conference was originally scheduled to be held at the UI Salemba campus on Sunday morning, but the university abruptly prohibited the activity. The reason given was that the event did not meet administrative procedures. Following the ban, the committee shifted the agenda from a morning discussion session to directly drafting views in a working meeting. Three main issues will be discussed in the working meeting. The first concerns the direction, goals, and values of the Republic Conference movement, recalling the history of youth and intellectual movements that established Perhimpunan Indonesia in 1928. The second issue involves future organisational arrangements, including plans to visit regions to disseminate ideas. ‘How we network. We will discuss that in the second topic,’ he said. The third issue concerns the leadership structure and division of roles within the movement. ‘But this is not leadership like committees to become commissioners of state-owned enterprises; that is not the case,’ he said. Committee member Jaleswari Pramodhawardani said UI claimed the activity did not meet administrative procedures. ‘In fact, we had complied with the procedures,’ she said. She explained that the committee had submitted a permit application well in advance. On Wednesday, 24 June 2026, UI issued a letter of assignment granting permission to use campus facilities. ‘We interpreted that as the letter being accepted,’ she said. The committee had prepared everything one day before the event. By Saturday afternoon, 27 June, there was no change in the campus’s stance. The room had been fitted with a Republic Conference backdrop and some equipment had been arranged. However, at 21.00 WIB, security personnel halted the ongoing loading process. At midnight, the committee received notification of the permit rejection from UI. Jaleswari suspects external parties pressured UI to cancel the event. UI Director of Public Relations, Media, Government, and International Affairs, Erwin Agustian Panigoro, said the university is preparing a response. This consolidation conference follows the first Republic Conference held in Yogyakarta on 30 May 2026, which was attended by hundreds of civil society organisations, activists, and academics. The conference at Gadjah Mada University produced several key findings, including concerns about simultaneous difficulties in various aspects of the republic’s life. Civil society also highlighted that democratic institutions are far from fulfilling their representative and oversight functions despite operating formally. According to the conference, a cross-sectoral crisis has occurred and is affecting citizens’ relationships.