JAKARTA: The Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) helped treat several demonstrators who were injured while staging a rally against the job creation law near the State Palace.
“As per preliminary data, 60 demonstrators have been treated at the command post on Kwitang Raya Street and their number continues to increase,” Chief of the service section of the PMI station in Jakarta, Herman, said in a written statement released on Thursday night.
Most of the injured demonstrators had been exposed to tear gas, he said adding, they were suffering from shortness of breath. Some of them had congenital disease, he informed.
“Those suffering minor injuries were treated on the spot, while those requiring medical treatment were rushed to nearby hospitals,” he said.
The condition of the injured demonstrators was improving and some of them had been advised to return home soon to restore their health, he added.
“We and the ambulance team will go on standby until the situation becomes conducive,” he continued.
The PMI has readied 12 ambulances and 47 personnel as a precautionary measure to provide medical services amid protests against the job creation law.
The House of Representatives passed the bill into law on Monday night, sparking widespread rallies in several major cities including Jakarta, Semarang, Bandung, and Medan.
