00:00Indonesia has almost doubled a key allowance for its lawmakers
00:04just a month after cancelling several benefits for members of parliament
00:07following nationwide protests.
00:10Lawmakers will now get 702 million rupiah or nearly 180,000 ringgit
00:16in recess allowances, up from 400 million previously.
00:22The allowance is intended to support lawmakers in carrying out official duties
00:27when parliament is not in session.
00:30House Deputy Speaker Submi Dasko Ahmad defended the increase,
00:34saying the previous rate was based on the 2019-2024 period
00:39and did not reflect current costs of food and transport.
00:43Indonesian lawmakers typically take five recesses a year,
00:47during which they visit their constituencies and gather feedback from voters.
00:52Earlier in August, monthly housing allowances that were nearly 10 times
00:56the minimum wage in Jakarta sparked mass demonstrations.
01:00The protests escalated into riots after a delivery driver was killed
01:05in a police operation, leaving 10 dead and more than 5,000 arrested.
01:10Several benefits were later scrapped in an attempt to ease public anger.
01:14An
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