Anti-Chinese? Backlash and praise for new Jakarta governor’s racially tinged speech
Anies Baswedan said that ‘pribumi’ (native or indigenous Indonesians) should take back control of the country from ‘colonial’ influences
The new governor of Indonesia’s capital faced a barrage of criticism on Tuesday for remarks in his inauguration speech that some residents and politicians warned could stoke ethnic and religious tension in the Southeast Asian country.
Anies Baswedan, a former education minister, said in a speech only hours after he was sworn in on Monday that “pribumi” (native or indigenous Indonesians) should take back control of the country from “colonial” influences.
His comments came as tolerance in the Muslim-majority country has been under scrutiny since bitterly fought city elections this year during which Islamist-led rallies targeted the former governor, an ethnic Chinese Christian, in a controversial blasphemy case.
“We ‘pribumi’ people were oppressed and defeated. Now, after independence, it is time for us to be masters in our own country,” Baswedan said in a speech to supporters outside the Jakarta City Hall late on Monday.
The word ‘pribumi’, which excludes ethnic groups like Chinese Indonesians or Indian Indonesians who have lived in the country for generations, was the top trending topic on Twitter in Indonesia on Tuesday.
