Indonesia election: unimpressed with both Jokowi and Prabowo, 31 organisations urge people to abstain from voting in #SayaGolput movement

Indonesia’s golput movement – the act of casting a blank ballot or abstaining from voting – is growing rapidly on social media

Among them are one-time supporters of President Joko Widodo who say they are disenchanted with what they perceive as his failure to promote human rights

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President Joko Widodo meeting supporters at a campaign rally. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 12:00am, 9 Apr 2019Updated: 11:43pm, 11 Apr 2019

Maria Sumarsih, 66, whose son was one of the students shot dead by military forces in 1998, will not be voting for any presidential candidate in Indonesia’s election next week.

Neither will Suciwati, 51, whose human rights activist husband Munir Said was murdered in 2004.

Both women are among an increasingly vocal group of Indonesians pledging to abstain or cast a blank vote – known as golput – at next week’s presidential election.

Among them are one-time supporters of President Joko Widodo, popularly known as Jokowi, who say they are disenchanted with what they perceive as his failure to take concrete steps in promoting human rights.

President Joko Widodo at a rally in Serang, Indonesia. Photo: EPA-EFE

At the same time, they also have little faith that Jokowi’s challenger, Prabowo Subianto, a former army general who has been accused of human rights abuses during his military stint, will be able to do better.

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