What’s driving anti-Ahok Muslims to Jakarta’s polls?
The blasphemy trial of Basuki Tjahaja Purnama is not the only issue that will come into play when the Indonesian capital votes on whether to keep its ethnic Chinese Christian governor in office
In early December Ahmad Zakarsih, a 34-year-old school administrator and Bekasi resident, left his house at 6am for the 28km journey to the capital.
The proud owner of a Jakarta identity card that gives him the right to vote in the city’s upcoming gubernatorial election, he went there to protest against Jakarta’s governor, Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, widely known as “Ahok”, who is on the ballot this week.
Purnama stands accused of insulting the Koran during a campaign stop in Jakarta’s Thousand Islands constituency last October. With the vote just days away, he remains on trial for blasphemy.
Zakarsih had a simple reason for joining the more than 200,000 protestors – one of Indonesia’s largest demonstrations: “I felt I was answering a call of nature. To my mind, Purnama had shown disrespect to Islam.”
That’s not to say that he’s always been anti-Purnama: “I could well have voted for Ahok if he hadn’t been involved in the case. In fact, I have no problem if Ahok isn’t imprisoned because if he truly is guilty, then Allah will punish him anyway.”
