Smooth start
Indonesia’s presidential election campaign begins with candidates vowing a peaceful contest.
JakaRta: Campaigning for Indonesia’s presidential election in April has kicked off, pitting incumbent Joko Widodo against a former military general in the race to lead the world’s third-biggest democracy.
Opinion polls show Joko, whose down-to-earth style and ambitious infrastructure drive have made him popular with many Indonesians, well ahead of his main challenger Prabowo Subianto.
But his bid for a second term is facing headwinds over his economic record, with the Indonesian rupiah sitting at two-decade lows and fears of a fake news campaign intended to disrupt his re-election.
Some 186 million voters in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country are expected go to the polls on April 17, in an election which will also decide members of national and local parliaments.
Both leaders attended an official campaign launch in central Jakarta yesterday morning, in which they pledged to run a peaceful contest free from hoaxes and the politicisation of ethnicity and religion.
Many Indonesians will be keen to avoid a repeat of last year’s Jakarta gubernatorial elections, which were marked by massive street protests led by hardline Muslims opposed to the capital’s former governor, who is ethnic Chinese and a Christian.
Analysts say campaigning is likely to focus on the economy, inequal- ity, identity politics and rising intolerance across the sprawling Southeast Asian archipelago.
Joko surprised many in August by choosing to run alongside conservative Islamic cleric Ma’ruf Amin.
Ma’ruf, 75, is chairman of the country’s top Islamic authority, the Indonesian Ulema Council, and is known for his disparaging views towards certain minorities.
About 90% of Indonesia’s 260 million people have traditionally followed a moderate form of Islam, but there are concerns that it is taking a more conservative turn.
The pair will square off against Prabowo and former deputy Jakarta governor Sandiaga Uno, a businessman and private equity tycoon.
Prabowo, who lost to Joko in 2014, was a top military figure in the chaotic months before dictator Suharto was toppled by student protests in 1998.
Following the strongman’s downfall, he admitted ordering the abduction of democracy activists and was discharged from the military.
The first major survey by the Indonesian Survey Circle after candidate registration closed showed Jokowi and Amin with 52% support ahead of Prabowo and Uno (30%).
Pundits say Joko is most vulnerable when it comes to the economy and inequality.
Indonesia’s currency has slumped in recent weeks, falling to levels not seen since the country was embroiled in a region-wide financial crisis that sparked economic ruin and street protests that led to the downfall of Suharto.