Indonesian political parties have agreed to cut lawmakers' benefits, President Prabowo Subianto said on Sunday, in a bid to calm anti-government protests that have killed at least five people in the country's worst violence in decades.
Protests began on Aug. 25 over what demonstrators called excessive pay and housing allowances for parliamentarians, escalating into riots on Friday after a motorcycle rideshare driver was killed during police action at a protest site.
Homes of political party members and state buildings were ransacked or set ablaze, shaking investor confidence in the Southeast Asian economy and triggering a steep selloff on its stocks and currency markets on Friday.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.