Conservative Muslims protest Indonesian fuel price hikes

By ANDI JATMIKO and NINIEK KARMINI
Associated Press

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Hundreds of conservative Muslims have marched in Indonesia’s capital demanding that the government revoke its decision to raise fuel prices, saying it hurts people already reeling from the economic impact of the pandemic. Authorities blocked streets leading to the Presidential Palace as the demonstrators, many wearing white Islamic robes, filled a major thoroughfare. Prices of gasoline and diesel fuel jumped by about 30% last month after President Joko Widodo’s administration cut fuel subsidies to reduce the country’s multibillion-dollar budget deficit. Fuel prices are a politically sensitive issue that can trigger other price hikes and possible mass protests. In 1998, an increase in fuel prices sparked riots that helped topple longtime dictator Suharto.