Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto calls acid attack on activist Andrie Yunus 'terrorism'

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto condemns acid attack on activist Andrie Yunus as terrorism, pledging to pursue justice.

“An acid attack that maimed an Indonesian rights activist was an act of terror,” President Prabowo Subianto said in an interview, vowing accountability.

Andrie Yunus, deputy coordinator of Jakarta-based NGO KontraS, was riding a motorbike last week when he was approached by two men on a scooter, one of whom threw acid at him, according to the group. He suffered injuries to his face, an eye, hands and torso.

Indonesia arrests four military officers allegedly involved in acid attack on activist

"This is terrorism, isn't it? A barbaric act. We must pursue (the perpetrators)," Mr. Prabowo said in an interview published on Thursday (March 19, 2026) on his personal YouTube channel. The former general vowed to "uphold the law" regardless of who was behind the attack.

The military detained four soldiers from the armed forces' intelligence unit on Wednesday (March 18, 2026), suspecting their involvement.

The same day, the Jakarta Police released CCTV footage showing the faces of two people suspected of attacking Mr. Andrie. Their links to the detained soldiers were unclear. Mr. Andrie has repeatedly taken issue with the military's influence in the government and had recorded a podcast on the topic shortly before he was attacked.