Jarkata says foiled plot to exploit protest

Indonesian police on Friday said they had detained eight people before dawn, thwarting a plot hatched to take advantage of a demonstration by tens of thousands of Muslims and lead an uprising against President Joko Widodo’s government.

The detentions followed weeks of tension, during which Widodo said “political actors” had fanned violence at a protest on November 4 and the country’s police chief warned that “certain groups” might try to occupy parliament during Friday’s rally.

The group had been under surveillance for at least three weeks, and the move against it came hours before the start of a rally in central Jakarta to protest against the city’s governor, a Christian accused of insulting the Koran.

Police spokesman Boy Rafli Amar described the plan as attempted subver- sion of Widodo’s government, which has strong support from the military.

“The suspicion is that among other things there was a link to plans to attempt subversion, and to take advantage of conditions today,” Amar said.

A sea of white-clad protesters surged around Jakarta’s National Monument on Friday morning. Police estimated their number at about 150,000, many having come from towns and cities across the island of Java.

They chanted and carried banners demanding that the city’s governor, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, be jailed.

Purnama is being investigated over comments about his opponents’ use of the Koran during political campaigning. He denies wrongdoing, but has apologized for the remarks.