Indonesian protestors march during an anti-Bush rally in downtown Jakarta, Indonesia, Nov. 19, 2006.  (Xinhua Photo) Photo Gallery >>>

JAKARTA, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Tens of Thousands of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) members here on Sunday staged a rally opposing the upcoming visit of U.S. President George W. Bush to Indonesia.

    PKS President Tifatul Sembiring in his speech during the gathering in Al-Azhar Mosque, South Jakarta, said the U.S. president's foreign policy was responsible for the deaths of around 650,000 Iraqi people since the U.S. invasion in 2003.

    "Let's fight, don't let Indonesia as a sovereign country be dictated by the US," he said.

    The protesters carried banners and posters showing texts reading among other things "Stop Bush Now".

    The party's chief also officially saw off around 2,000 PKS members who were about to leave for Bogor to join a huge rally expected to be held in Bogor during the visit of President Bush on Monday.

    Another rally was held here on Sunday with at least 5,000 people grouped in a 'Coalition to Crush Bush', which consisted of tens of Muslim organizations.

    During the rally, they marched from Hotel Indonesia (HI) to Merdeka Palace.

    Similar anti-Bush rallies were also staged on Sunday in several other Indonesian cities such as Surabaya (East Java Province), Pontianak (West Kalimantan), Pekanbaru (Riau, Sumatra), Mataram (West Nusa Tenggara), Yogyakarta (central Java), and Banda Aceh (northern Sumatra).

    After attending the APEC Summit in Hanoi, Bush is scheduled to make a brief state visit for around 10 hours to Indonesia on Monday.

    Bush is scheduled to have bilateral talks with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and a meeting with several Indonesian prominent figures, including Muslim scholars and scientists, at the Bogor Presidential Palace, around 60 km south of Jakarta.

    This will be Bush's second visit to Indonesia after the October 2003 trip to Bali.