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One and a half month from now Jakarta’s electorate will choose either incumbent governor Fauzi or challenger Jokowi to lead the metropolis in the next term. I bet the man from Solo will win the gubernatorial elections. If only because of the choice of his running mate.
In my perception Jokowi played the ethnic card in a smart and subtle way. Being a Christian of Chinese descent Basuki ‘Ahok’ Tjahaja Purnama will carry all Chinese-Indonesian votes (if we can believe the pollsters) and may well tip the balance. Ethnicity and religion ( and race and intergroup relations) shouldn’t be an issue – but they are.
The odds for Fauzi are negative. Some help would be welcome. He badly needs devoted groupies to do the tackles for him. Especially dirty tricks which are on the verge of playing with political fire.The next six or seven weeks are due to be tough. If you can’t stand the heat you’d better keep out of the kitchen. In this political arena you can’t win a trophy for fair play.
Weird as it may seem for a famous Dangdut performer but Rhoma Irama actually did reveal himself as that kind of Fauzi groupie. He in a desperate effort to help the present governor, stated, facing an audience of fans and supporters ( I assume they were fans and supporters), they should only vote for candidates of their own religion. In other words don’t vote Jokowi because with him a Christian will be in the local centre of administrative power. So the Singer played a controversial card.
He may have persuaded a number of people. But unlike Jokowi the way he did it was blunt. Not smart neither subtle. And he was legally offside. His speech caused a storm of indignation. I guess that by the negative publicity fallout the number of voters he pushed to Jokowi will vastly outnumber the ones he convinced. I’m afraid he in the end did render the present governor a huge disservice.
The performer himself has been blamed for negative campaigning. He has been questioned by and is under investigation from Jakarta Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu). And turned into an injured cry baby in the process.
With that kind of friends Fauzi needs no enemies.
Yet the public indignation is odd. After all elections, democratic elections, are about convincing people that voting you in office is in the best interest of all citizens. That you’ve got visions, plans, personality and abilities which are superior. And it also is about making clear the competitor is a disastrous alternative. To point that out, to communicate that to the electorate, everything is allowed which is not explicitly forbidden. Anything, low brow and high brow, nice and mean, to get them on your side.
Of course intellectual pauperism is deplorable. And no doubt it is nothing but intellectual pauperism if the debate deteriorates to issues like ethnic descent and religion of the candidates. But then democracy is not exclusively for academics. If Obama can weather accusations, lies, by American Christian fundamentalist that he is a secret Muslim ( religion card) and by Republican Birthers that he can’t be a legal President because he even isn’t a born American (ethnic-nationalistic card), why shouldn’t Jokowi and the Jakarta electorate shrug their shoulders about some singer who blundered in the local political arena and calls on people to vote exclusively for fellow believers, even if they are incompetent?
It’s just part of the game.
the election has put racism into new level. I know racism exists but never this openly. I have always been enrolled in catholic schools dominated by chinese indonesians, I rarely experienced racism if there was any.
the closest probably during my junior high, I remember one of my class mate was bullied during junior high due to her brown skin by the boys. retrospectively, I think it’s form of racism.
most chinese indonesians arent really about their identity as minority due to assimilation policy during soeharto’s era, but now with polarization and open racism in the campaign, it seems people here getting more self-conscious about their identity.
I’m afraid that if jokowi-ahok won, the racial issue will explode and the society become more segregated ever than before.
@ calvin: It’s part of the human condition apparently; stereotypes, prejudices, racism and ethnic violence – it’s of all times and all societies. Particularly Chinese-Indonesians have every reason to be on their guard. History tells them they have been be scapegoats and victims often through the centuries.
Temporarily using underbelly emotions is dangerous indeed, yet playing foul in election campaigns need no be the overture to discrimination and violence. Actually it’s pretty common. And on the bright side Jokowi’s choice of his running mate perhaps also indicates real harmony is on it’s way.
John F. Kennedy’s presidential candidacy stirred commotion and heated discussions because he was a Roman Catholic. Just like Obama’s running for President did because he was black (well, kind of). But eventually both of these campaigns didn’t divide the nation but helped to unite.
Why shouldn’t that happen in Jakarta/Indonesia?
@Calvin I am not so afraid. I think Jakarta is ready for this. Jakarta is a serious mix of people from different background, etnic, religion, and tribe. Everyone and anyone in this city actualy just want one simple thing … a more organized and efficient Jakarta. Not a village try to cosmopolitan but a cosmopolitan with strong identity of Indonesia.
I agree with @colson that harmony is in its way. It might be painful as a result of it. But it’s better a pain with progress than nothing happen. Whether jokowi/ahok will win the game or not…they already set a tone that voters are no longer blinded by money or bigger parcel. Voters these days want result and if you can not deliver then you should get out of the way
@ bonnie2405: It’s boosting my mood to see that prudent optimism runs in the family (your and mine in-laws included
). Let’s hope it’s contagious. Because some optimism is necessary to reach ambitious goals.