Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad. - Antara
JAKARTA: Indonesia has nearly doubled a key allowance for its lawmakers, an official said on Monday (Oct 13), one month after cancelling some of the benefits given to parliamentarians in an effort to assuage public anger following a series of violent demonstrations.
In August, thousands of students, rights groups, and other civilians joined protests against the government's spending priorities, including pay rises for lawmakers. The demonstrations later spiralled into riots after a motorcycle taxi driver was killed during a police operation.
