Indonesia a Shared House

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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said he was prepared to cooperate with all parties to develop Indonesia, while Prabowo Subianto asked demonstrators to go home and obey the law.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Indonesia is a house we all share. Therefore, it is appropriate for all elements of the nation unite and reknit the social fabric to develop the nation together following the 2019 elections.

President Jokowi has thus stressed that he is ready to welcome anyone who wants to work together in developing and advancing the nation. However, those who interfere with security, democracy and the integrity and unity of the Indonesian nation will “not be tolerated”.

The President made the statement on the sidelines of a meeting Wednesday (5/22/2019) to discuss the latest situation at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta.

Demonstrations protesting the 2019 election results that began on Tuesday afternoon in front of the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) on Jl. M.H. Thamrin in Central Jakarta escalated overnight into rioting and continued on Wednesday.

The situation escalated into violence when a group of rioters appeared at around 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday. This group was different from the afternoon’s demonstrators, who had generally dispersed by Tuesday evening, picking up garbage as they left the area. The demonstrators dispersed after the police requested them to do so in accordance with National Police Chief Regulation No. 7/2012 on police services, security and public disclosure procedures, which stipulated that public demonstrations were permitted only from 6:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The group that appeared at 11:00 p.m. on Tuesday threw rocks and Molotov cocktails at security forces, while another group of rioters appeared on Wednesday morning in the area of Jl. KS Tubun in Petamburan, Tanah Abang, and continued the violence.

By Wednesday night, the situation at the Bawaslu was under control, and nearby areas in

Tanah Abang and other parts of Jakarta seemed relatively quiet compared to normal days. Several public transportation services in Jakarta were also diverted.

Arief Nasrudin, the president director of city-owned market operator Pasar Jaya, said that the series of mass protests had paralyzed economic activities throughout Tanah Abang Market. The Thomas Market in Cideng had also temporarily ceased trading, with losses from the riots estimated to be more than Rp 200 billion.

Under control

Jokowi emphasized that control had been restored in Jakarta and surrounding areas, and that the public need not worry and could resume their usual activities.

"I will not tolerate anyone who disrupts the security, the democratic process and the unity of our beloved country," he said.

The President thus instructed the National Police (Polri) and the Indonesian Military (TNI) to take firm action against any rioters that intended to destroy the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). "The TNI and Polri will take firm action in accordance with existing laws," he said.

Separately, rival candidate Prabowo Subianto asked all parties to exercise restraint. "We support all use of the constitutional rights in our national political struggle that is moral, peaceful and nonviolent," he said.

Prabowo also asked his supporters to "respect the law enforcement officers and never use violence".

Jokowi-Ma\'ruf Amin National Campaign Team (TKN) deputy chair Johnny G. Plate reminded the public to be aware of the possibility of third parties and others using the current situation to provoke unrest and instability, particularly as the riots had continued despite Prabowo asking his supporters to carry out peaceful actions.

"We wondered what was really happening, since Pak [Mr.] Prabowo’s repeated calls for peaceful action appeared to be unheeded. Was Pak Prabowo’s appeal not serious, or are the masses listening to other leaders?" he asked.

Election results

Regarding the official results of the 2019 elections as the General Elections Commission (KPU) had announced, spokespersons coordinator Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak of the Prabowo-Sandiaga “Sandi” Uno National Winning Body (BPN) said that Prabowo-Sandi would submit an election petition to the Constitutional Court on Thursday.

"I appreciate that Pak Prabowo-Sandi is disputing [the results of] the presidential election at the Constitutional Court. I also believe that the Constitutional Court justices will come to a decision based on the available facts," Jokowi said in response to the planned petition.

The Democratic Party’s joint task force commander Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono shared the President’s sentiment.

Agus met with Jokowi for around 30 minutes on Wednesday, during which he congratulated the incumbent on his reelection victory. Agus also agreed with the President on the shared goal to make Indonesia better, more just and prosperous as a large, shared house for all.

Aside from receiving Agus’ visit, Jokowi also received on Wednesday People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Speaker and National Mandate Party (PAN) chairman Zulkifli Hasan.

Following his meeting, Zulkifli and others urged all parties to reach a peaceful resolution through dialogue and the ties of brotherhood.

The Democrats and PAN were part of the coalition backing Prabowo-Sandi’s 2019 election bid, along with the Gerindra Party, the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and the Working Party.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla is trying to arrange a meeting involving the political elite that contested the 2019 elections and other national figures in an effort to accelerate reconciliation. The meeting is expected to reduce the political tensions that flared up following the KPU’s announcement of the official election results.

"The government is ready to talk, to dialogue, with all [political] figures. We are ready to talk because our goal is the same – peace, prosperity," said Kalla, adding that the planned meeting would also include Prabowo and Sandi.

Jokowi-Ma\'ruf TKN advisor Airlangga Hartarto said that the campaign team had tried to arrange a meeting between the Jokowi-Ma\'ruf and Prabowo-Sandi coalitions since the polls closed on April 17, but that the meeting had still not materialized.

"Perhaps situational and conditional constraints exist (in holding the meeting), because cross-camp communication is being maintained," he said.

https://cdn-assetd.kompas.id/lUDI7r6lbee46eFowxSPI6V8LtQ=/1024x576/https%3A%2F%2Fkompas.id%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F05%2F20190521_PRABOWO-SANDI-AKAN-MENGADU-KE-MK_D_web_1558428925.jpg — ANTARA FOTO/SIGID KURNIAWAN
Losing presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto listens to questions from the media while giving a press statement at his residence in Kertanegara, South Jakarta, on Tuesday (21/5/2019). Prabowo and running mate Sandiaga Uno rejected the results of the recapitulation of the 2019 elections and decided to file a lawsuit at the Constitutional Court.

Airlangga said that the political parties in the Jokowi-Ma\'ruf coalition were communicating regularly with the Prabowo-Sandi coalition parties. He added that Jokowi also maintained good relations with a number of parties in the Prabowo coalition.

"So the relations among the parties are actually fluid. It is hoped that this will alleviate the recent escalation of problems. Moreover, all parties in the legislative elections have accepted the election results," he said.

(AGE/NTA/SPW/INA/REK/REN/SHR/LAS/HLN/BOW/WAD/SAN

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