In the run-up to the Indonesian elections on February 14, efforts by the outgoing president Joko Widodo to indirectly support one of the three candidates for the country's top office – 72-year-old former general Prabowo Subianto – have sparked an outcry in universities, with professors, students and deans taking to the streets since February 1 to protest against what they say are ethical violations and attacks on democracy.
More than a hundred public and private institutions, joined by figures from the democratic struggle of the late 1990s against the Suharto dictatorship (1965-1998), have held press conferences broadcast live on social media and issued press releases.
Prabowo, who ran unsuccessfully against "Jokowi" – as the president is also known – in the 2014 and 2019 elections before becoming his defense minister, is the favorite in the polls. Two hundred and five million people are registered to vote in this vast archipelago of 17,000 islands – 7,000 of which are inhabited. The ballot combines presidential, legislative and municipal elections. According to some polls, "Prabowo," as everyone calls him, stands to take just over 50% of the vote, representing the threshold needed to win the election in the first round. Otherwise, a second round will be held in June.
Running against him is the candidate for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP) – the incumbent president's party – Ganjar Pranowo, 55, who although being his expected successor, was quickly undermined by the lack of support from "Jokowi," and has been relegated to last place in the trio. The most credible challenger is another 50-year-old former governor of Jakarta, Anies Baswedan. Originally associated with Islamist circles, he has steadily seen his standing rise thanks to his innovative proposals.
Widodo, who is still riding high with a popularity rating of around 80%, has by no means officially endorsed Prabowo's candidacy. He has also had to confirm in recent days that he will not be campaigning. But the damage has been done when one of Widodo's sons, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, was chosen just before the start of the campaign in November 2023 by the former general as his vice-president. What's more, in view of the fact that he is under the required legal age of 40, his candidacy was only approved after several controversial rulings by the Constitutional Court.
The whole procedure is problematic. Without being a specialist, it's difficult to understand. That's why we lawyers decided to sound the alarm, explained Titi Anggraini, a specialist in constitutional law who founded an election monitoring association a few years ago and teaches at the University of Indonesia. Along with others, she is denouncing the politicization of the judiciary. "What's most shocking is that this concerns the Constitutional Court, the very organization that, in our eyes, guarantees free and fair elections," she continued.
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