TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta Metro Police’s Traffic Directorate mobilized 400 personnel to regulate traffic flow in the capital city due to workers’ demonstration in a number of locations today, December 8. The Police Traffic Director Sr. Comr. Sambodo Purnomo Yogo said there would be several rallies taking place at the same time.

According to him, most of the workers who demanded a hike in the provincial minimum wage (UMP) would concentrate at Arjuna Wijaya Horse Statue, Central Jakarta.

To keep the traffic smooth, 400 police officers would stand guard in a number of rally sites. “At the DPR/MPR Building, KPK building, Kemnaker (Manpower Ministry) building, the City Hall, and most of them are in the Horse Statue,” Sambodo said today, December 8, in Jakarta.

Based on the field report, the mass had started moving from Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi areas to Jakarta. “There are many people [arriving] from Tangerang,” he added.

Jakarta Police also diverted the traffic and closed Jalan Medan Merdeka Barat before the Sapta Pesona building.

Sambodo said the road closure would be enforced depending on the situation. A number of roads, including Thamrin-Kebon Sirih intersection road, would also be blocked. The road heading to Jakarta City Hall, or Jalan Medan Merdeka Selatan, was also closed as protesters came.

Thousands of workers headed to the State Palace and City Hall, demanding a surge in the 2022 UMP by at least 10 percent. They also urged President Jokowi to issue discretion to cancel the Gubernatorial Decree on the next year’s vacation.

Read: Streets Closed as Labor Unions Protest Against 2022 Minimum Wage

CLARA MARIA TJANDRA DEWI H.