{"id":39200,"date":"2025-03-25T12:03:24","date_gmt":"2025-03-25T10:03:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/?p=39200"},"modified":"2025-03-27T13:28:15","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T11:28:15","slug":"dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/","title":{"rendered":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"wp-post\" data-elementor-id=\"39200\" class=\"elementor elementor-39200\" data-elementor-post-type=\"post\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-5ccb3124 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"5ccb3124\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-7aab4e45\" data-id=\"7aab4e45\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-6b832900 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"6b832900\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-no-translation=\"\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-7881843f elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"7881843f\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-no-translation=\"\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<style>.elementor-element-7881843f{display:none !important}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-37edecd8 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"37edecd8\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-21dd4c99\" data-id=\"21dd4c99\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-7a6f8b43 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default\" data-id=\"7a6f8b43\" data-element_type=\"section\" data-e-type=\"section\" data-no-translation=\"\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-27f56eb9\" data-id=\"27f56eb9\" data-element_type=\"column\" data-e-type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-2743ff75 elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"2743ff75\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-e-type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2>What is happening?<\/h2><p>Can light come out of darkness? Indonesian youth who have been protesting on the streets of the archipelagic nation since February 17 seem to believe that. The <a href=\"https:\/\/safenet.or.id\/2025\/03\/indonesiagelap-digital-space-is-packed-with-censorship\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">#IndonesiaGelap <\/a>demonstrations, which translates into \u201c<strong>Dark Indonesia<\/strong>,\u201d show students\u2019 and activists\u2019 <strong>discontent with the policies of President Prabowo Subianto Djojohadikusumo<\/strong> that, protesters believe, point to the growing issue of <strong>state capture<\/strong> in Indonesia. The core of the unrest lies in Prabowo\u2019s <strong>austerity measures<\/strong>, which have impacted sectors that are critical for human development, like <strong>education<\/strong>. Less than three decades since Indonesia began its transition to democracy, protesters also fear the specter of authoritarianism and the <strong>expansion of the armed forces&#8217; role in civilian life<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p><h2>\u00a0<\/h2><h2>What is the broader picture?<\/h2><p>Prabowo\u2019s rise to power in the 2024 Indonesian presidential election was significantly bolstered by <strong>the <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/fulcrum.sg\/the-jokowi-factor-how-joko-widodo-helped-prabowo-to-win-indonesias-presidency\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>backing<\/strong><\/a><strong> of then-incumbent President Joko Widodo<\/strong>. Analysts argue that Widodo\u2019s support helped Prabowo consolidate <strong>a broad political coalition<\/strong>, despite lingering concerns over his record, including <strong>allegations of human rights violations<\/strong> during his military career. In particular, Prabowo has been able to gain <strong>significant support from young voters<\/strong>, which can be <a href=\"https:\/\/pacificaffairs.ubc.ca\/articles\/third-times-the-charm-the-youth-vote-and-prabowos-victory-in-the-2024-indonesian-presidential-election\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">attributed<\/a> to his sophisticated <a href=\"https:\/\/reporter.anu.edu.au\/all-stories\/did-prabowo-subiantos-tiktok-makeover-impact-the-indonesian-election-results\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>social media<\/strong><\/a><strong> campaign<\/strong>, \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/full\/10.1177\/18681034241252452\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>authoritarian nostalgia<\/strong><\/a>\u201d or the waning memory of Indonesia\u2019s \u201cNew Order,\u201d and <a href=\"https:\/\/ugm.ac.id\/en\/news\/dynamic-young-voters-set-to-shape-indonesias-2024-election-landscape\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>growing concerns<\/strong><\/a><strong> about economic well-being <\/strong>among younger demographics.<\/p><p>Now, the same people who helped elect Prabowo \u2013 millennials and Generation Z constituted about 52 percent of the colossal 204,807,222-strong registered voter base in 2024 \u2013 are taking it to the streets to <strong>voice their discontent<\/strong>. In February, students <a href=\"https:\/\/acleddata.com\/2025\/03\/07\/asia-pacific-overview-march-2025\/#keytrends3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">staged<\/a> around 100 demonstrations in at least 30 provinces across the country.<\/p><p>Since taking office, Prabowo\u2019s administration has asseverated <strong>economic growth<\/strong> and <strong>national security<\/strong>, but his recent <a href=\"https:\/\/indonesiaatmelbourne.unimelb.edu.au\/why-prabowos-misguided-austerity-is-emblematic-of-his-free-wheeling-economic-policy\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>austerity measures<\/strong><\/a>, mandated through Presidential Instruction Number 1 of 2025, have drawn criticism. Cuts in education and welfare programs are <a href=\"https:\/\/ugm.ac.id\/en\/news\/ugm-expert-budget-cuts-could-lower-education-quality-and-cause-economic-contraction\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">particularly concerning<\/a>. Education authorities will likely need to<strong> limit the scope of scholarship instruments<\/strong> to <strong>break the cycle of poverty<\/strong> and <strong>reduce social inequality<\/strong>. At the same time, the government bodies close to Prabowo, including law enforcement, have not had their budget cuts. These include the Ministry of Defense, the National Police, and the Attorney General\u2019s Office. This suggests a <strong>subjective and personal interests-driven approach<\/strong> to budget cuts, rather than one informed by <strong>government efficiency.<\/strong><\/p><p>At the same time, his government\u2019s introduction of the <strong>Makan Bergizi Gratis<\/strong> (\u201cFree Nutritious Meal\u201d) <strong>program<\/strong>, <a href=\"https:\/\/en.antaranews.com\/news\/332633\/police-is-strategic-partner-in-implementing-nutritious-meal-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">administered<\/a> by the military and police, has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.benarnews.org\/english\/news\/indonesian\/papua-students-protest-free-meal-02242025114209.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sparked fears<\/a> of a resurgence of <strong>Dwifungsi ABRI<\/strong>, a policy that previously allowed the<strong> military to exert influence over civilian affairs<\/strong>. Free school lunches might not be free, after all \u2013 students are <a href=\"https:\/\/fulcrum.sg\/indonesias-free-school-lunches-not-so-free\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">criticizing<\/a> the policy as populist and inefficient, pointing to <strong>the importance of providing free tuition before offering free lunches<\/strong>. Despite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newstatesman.com\/politics\/2010\/10\/suharto-indonesia-rights\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the romanticization<\/a> of the \u201cNew Order\u201d by many Indonesians, the populace still remembers the authoritarian rule under Suharto, during which the military played a dominant role in governance, and they worry that Prabowo\u2019s policies could signal a <strong>shift back toward militarization<\/strong>.<\/p><h2>\u00a0<\/h2><h2>Why does it matter?<\/h2><p>The protests reflect <a href=\"https:\/\/www.journalofdemocracy.org\/online-exclusive\/why-indonesias-democracy-is-in-danger\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">deeper concerns<\/a> about <strong>democratic backsliding<\/strong> in Indonesia. Activists argue that Prabowo\u2019s moves, combined with his strong ties to the political elite, could <strong>undermine civilian oversight<\/strong> and <strong>erode democratic norms<\/strong>. Meanwhile, the<strong> economic uncertainty<\/strong> caused by<strong> budget reallocations <\/strong>has further fueled dissatisfaction, particularly among students and educators who see these cuts as <strong>a direct threat to Indonesia\u2019s future<\/strong>.<\/p><p>As tensions escalate, the government\u2019s response to the protests will be closely watched. <strong>Heavy-handed crackdowns<\/strong> \u2013 like one witnessed in Papua, where state forces <a href=\"https:\/\/humanrightsmonitor.org\/news\/president-probowos-school-lunch-program-triggers-protests-in-west-papua-police-officers-intimidate-arrest-and-ill-treat-protesters\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">deployed<\/a> live bullets and tear gas \u2013 could <strong>deepen public resentment<\/strong>. These demonstrations highlight growing anxieties about Indonesia\u2019s political direction under Prabowo\u2019s leadership.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia What is happening? Can light come out of darkness? Indonesian youth who have been protesting on the streets of the archipelagic nation since February 17 seem to believe that. The #IndonesiaGelap demonstrations, which translates into \u201cDark Indonesia,\u201d [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":39202,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[500],"tags":[495],"class_list":["post-39200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","tag-marcin-jerzewski"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia What is happening? Can light come out of darkness? Indonesian youth who have been protesting on the streets of the archipelagic nation since February 17 seem to believe that. The #IndonesiaGelap demonstrations, which translates into \u201cDark Indonesia,\u201d [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"European Values Center for Security Policy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2160\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1136\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7724fb271acacd215231c937a200a510\"},\"headline\":\"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1440,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Marcin Jerzewski\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/\",\"name\":\"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg\",\"width\":2160,\"height\":1136},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Dom\u016f\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"European Values Center for Security Policy\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"European Values Center for Security Policy\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/04\\\/logo-horse.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2021\\\/04\\\/logo-horse.svg\",\"caption\":\"European Values Center for Security Policy\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/7724fb271acacd215231c937a200a510\",\"name\":\"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/europeanvalues.cz\\\/en\\\/author\\\/ond-ber\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy","og_description":"Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia Illustration: Hutomo &#8211; CC BY-SA 4.0 license from Wikimedia What is happening? Can light come out of darkness? Indonesian youth who have been protesting on the streets of the archipelagic nation since February 17 seem to believe that. The #IndonesiaGelap demonstrations, which translates into \u201cDark Indonesia,\u201d [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/","og_site_name":"European Values Center for Security Policy","article_published_time":"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2160,"height":1136,"url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/"},"author":{"name":"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/7724fb271acacd215231c937a200a510"},"headline":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding","datePublished":"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/"},"wordCount":1440,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg","keywords":["Marcin Jerzewski"],"articleSection":["Articles"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/","url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/","name":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding - European Values Center for Security Policy","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg","datePublished":"2025-03-25T10:03:24+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-27T11:28:15+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/2025_Indonesian_student_protests.jpg","width":2160,"height":1136},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/dark-indonesia-youth-protests-austerity-and-democratic-backsliding\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Dom\u016f","item":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dark Indonesia: Youth Protests Austerity and Democratic Backsliding"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/","name":"European Values Center for Security Policy","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#organization","name":"European Values Center for Security Policy","url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/logo-horse.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/logo-horse.svg","caption":"European Values Center for Security Policy"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/7724fb271acacd215231c937a200a510","name":"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/f89146eedd3ddff4c25476fbcda302860efe5ac77dc8e7ad9cd2b43a88c341ce?s=96&r=g","caption":"Ond\u0159ej Ber\u00e1nek"},"url":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/author\/ond-ber\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39200"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39222,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39200\/revisions\/39222"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/39202"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/europeanvalues.cz\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}