Types of Weapons Used by the Indonesian Police in Crowd Control

According to monitoring by the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), between 2019 and 2024, there were 69 incidents of the use of crowd control weapons by the Indonesian National Police (Polri) resulting in casualties.

"A total of 718 people were injured and 30 died as a result of the use of crowd control weapons between 2019 and 2024," Kontras stated in its report (August 2025).

During this period, the most frequently used crowd control weapon by the Polri during protests was tear gas.

Police also used rubber bullets, water cannons, and live ammunition in similar situations.

The following weapons were used by the Polri in crowd control from 2019 to 2024, according to Kontras's monitoring:

• Tear gas: 51 cases
• Rubber bullets: 9 cases
• Water cannons: 8 cases
• Live ammunition: 4 cases

Based on the National Police Regulation Number 1 of 2009, the use of force in police actions consists of several stages.

The use of tear gas, firearms, or other tools is classified as a later stage, with the following details:

• Stage 1: Force with a deterrent effect;
• Stage 2: Verbal commands;
• Stage 3: Soft empty-handed control;
• Stage 4: Hard empty-handed control;
• Stage 5: Control with blunt weapons, chemical weapons, including tear gas, pepper spray, or other tools according to Polri standards;
• Stage 6: Control using firearms or other tools to stop the actions or behavior of perpetrators or suspects that could cause serious injury or death to Polri members or members of the public.