The Indonesian Parliament has been adjourned by protesters opposing changes to the electoral law

Indonesia's parliament has adjourned as online and street protests continue. The protesters object to a proposed parliamentary amendment to the electoral law in favour of the coalition of President Joko Widodo and his successor Prabowo.

Bloomberg reported that the stock market and the rupiah fell Thursday morning. The head of Jakarta's police force said at least 3,200 officers had been deployed in the city in case of clashes. Protest groups say they will gather thousands of demonstrators.

This comes after a parliamentary panel rushed through a draft legislation on Wednesday that contradicts an earlier decision by the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court issued a landmark ruling on Aug. 20 that upheld the minimum age limit for candidates in local elections and took steps to ensure that smaller parties can take part in the November local elections.

Prominent actors and singers shared an image of an "urgent warning" online, and thousands used the hashtag #KawalPutusanMK to call for the defence of the court's decision, which many see as supporting Indonesia's young democracy.

Lawmakers now want to change the law to, in effect, allow Joko's 29-year-old youngest son to run for deputy governor; Restoring some thresholds at the same time could leave Allies of Mr Prabowo and Mr Joko virtually uncontested in elections in Central Java and Jakarta.

But shortly after 10 a.m. in Jakarta (11 a.m., Singapore time), the plenary session of Parliament adjourned without a quorum, said Deputy Speaker Sufmi Dasco Ahmad. Lawmakers from the Democratic Party (PDI-P), the single largest party, seem to have boycotted the proceedings and plan to submit a memorandum of opposition.

Parliament has until next Monday, 26, the deadline for nominations for the November election, to push the bill through.

Earlier, the Supreme Court approved a change in the age limit for candidates for the 2024 local elections, setting the minimum age at 30 when candidates take office, rather than having to meet the age threshold when they stand for election, sparking public criticism and concerns about political interference in the judiciary.

Public opinion is widely believed that the change is to allow the current president Joko Widodo's youngest son, Kaesang Pangarep, who turns 30 in December this year, to run for the post of governor of Jakarta in November.

The Indonesian Reform Movement Party (Garuda), a small pro-Joko party, petitioned the court in May to amend the election law so that people aged 30 and above would be eligible to run for the post of chief and deputy chief instead of at least 30 at the time of taking the oath of office. A party spokesman said the move was to give young people a chance to lead Indonesia.

Three judges of Indonesia's Supreme Court approved the petition on May 30, just three days after its deliberations began. This has been criticised as paving the way for Mr Kassam to run.

Indonesian assets took a hit in early trading. The benchmark fell as much as 1 per cent before paring losses; Indonesia's rupiah fell 0.5% against the dollar, the worst performer among Asian currencies.