UGM Student Union Issues Statement After Protesters Disrupt Discussion with Budiman and Nusron Wahid

The UGM Student Union (Sema KM UGM) has issued a statement of stance following a student action that stormed and disbanded a discussion titled ‘Pancasila Unites the Indonesian Nation’ at the Innovation and Creativity Centre (GIK) on Monday evening (15/6/2026). The forum featured Head of the Poverty Alleviation Acceleration Agency Budiman Sudjatmiko, Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency Nusron Wahid, and Deputy Minister of Agriculture Sudaryono as speakers. What was supposed to be a warm discussion ended in heated confrontation. After the three officials presented their views, a number of students who had been arriving at the venue since the discussion began deemed the speakers unworthy of discussing Pancasila when the country’s condition was perceived to be far from well. In a statement read by student representative Sarah, the action was described as an expression of distrust towards a government repeatedly seen as acting against and oppressing the people. ‘It must be emphasised that what happened at GIK on the evening of 15 June was an expression of our distrust of a government that has repeatedly and clearly oppressed the people,’ Sarah stated. The students initially learned of the state officials’ visit to UGM through various social media posts. They then went to the location, judging that the forum, claimed to be a discussion, did not provide equal space for dialogue. Sema UGM assessed that the event, featuring the officials, was more of a platform to present government achievements rather than a substantive discussion. Amidst the shouting, clashes, and objects thrown towards the stage from various directions, the union stressed that the only thing that should be highlighted is a deep disgust and distrust towards a government that has first oppressed its people with violence. Sema UGM also outlined several reasons behind the students’ anger. They highlighted issues ranging from national economic policies and government projects to the revision of the TNI and Polri Laws, as well as the state of democracy and human rights enforcement in Indonesia. The students argued that recent government policies show a tendency to expand state power into civilian spaces. They also pointed to alleged repressive practices against citizens voicing criticism and various unresolved human rights violation cases. Furthermore, the students raised concerns about economic conditions they believe are increasingly burdening the public. The statement cited rising fuel prices, a wave of layoffs, and pressures on the education and social protection sectors as factors reinforcing their disappointment with the government. Sema KM UGM also addressed the situation in Papua, an issue that surfaced during interactions between students and officials after the discussion. They urged the government to provide broader access for the public and media to observe conditions in Papua firsthand if it wishes to refute allegations of human rights abuses and violence. ‘If it is true that there is no oppression and violence against the people in Papua, then show it to all Indonesian citizens. Show it by opening the widest possible access for the press to cover conditions in Papua and withdraw all military troops that have been spreading terror among the people,’ Sarah declared.