Expat Indonesians in Australia queue for hours to vote in presidential election
"Nearly 200 million people on our doorstep are about to vote for a new leader. Here's why it matters to Australia."
By Erwin Renaldi and Sean Mantesso
Posted yesterday at 7:21pm
Video: Expat Indonesians in Australia voice their hopes for their country's election. (ABC News)
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Expat Indonesians living in Australia have lined up for hours to vote in their country's election, with an estimated 15,000 casting their ballots at Indonesia's consulate in Melbourne, according to the Indonesian Overseas Election Committee.
Key points:
* Many Indonesians in Australia are first-time voters and waited for hours to cast their ballots
* Thousands did not register in advance, but decided to vote to determine their country's future
* They said corruption, protections for minorities, and effective governance are key issues
Indonesia riots: police draw Islamic-State links to deadly Jakarta protests that killed seven
"Nearly 200 million people on our doorstep are about to vote for a new leader. Here's why it matters to Australia. "
* Protests against incumbent leader Joko Widodo’s poll victory had petered out by Thursday but authorities remained on high alert for new clashes fuelled by supporters of Widodo’s challenger, Prabowo Subianto
* There were curbs on WhatsApp and Facebook to prevent fake news and hoaxes, including accusations against ethnic Chinese, from inflaming tensions
SCMP Andre Barahamin Amy Chew Agence France-Presse Reuters Published: 3:07pm, 23 May, 2019 Updated: 10:54pm, 23 May, 2019
Police officers leave a protest area outside the Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) headquarters in Jakarta. Photo: Reuters
Indonesian police on Thursday said members of an Islamic State-affiliated group had infiltrated into the mobs involved in violent protests that broke out in Jakarta this week.
[...]
The election supervisory agency earlier this week rejected Prabowo’s complaint about the election’s integrity after the only evidence of fraud provided by his team was links to online articles.
[...]
Authorities have blamed the violence on “provocateurs” they claimed had come from outside Jakarta to stir up trouble. Many of the protesters are thought to be members of the fundamentalist Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) that had thrown their support behind Prabowo for the election.
[...]
Police earlier said some of those arrested were found with envelopes containing 250,000-500,000 rupiah (US$17-US$34). Iqbal on Thursday added that some of those arrested were “street thugs” who hung around Tanah Abang market, one of the protest sites, and had received 300,000 rupiah to cause trouble.
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