Protesters picnic outside Indonesian parliament

Small, peaceful protests have been held outside the Indonesian parliament following more than a week of sometimes violent demonstrations, as the Muslim-majority country celebrated a holiday marking the Prophet Mohammad's birthday.

Students gathered for a "picnic protest," with poetry and book readings as they criticised politicians' benefits and called for the release of detained protesters and a withdrawal of military personnel from civil security duty.

"We have a picnic together, show our expression creatively, innovatively ... we don't just shout angrily but we have a cool, creative approach to express our anger," Vincent Thomas, a student leader from Padjadjaran University, said in a speech broadcast on Kompas TV.

Last week, protesters including students, workers and rights groups t