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| Southeast Asia |
| Contender in Jakarta governor race denies pandering to Indonesia’s hardline Islamists |
| 2017-02-22 |
| [SCMP] A former education minister in Moslem-majority Indonesia facing a run-off vote against a Christian to be Jakarta governor, on Tuesday denied pandering to Islamists to win support and said he could unite the capital after a divisive ...politicians call things divisivewhen when the other side sez something they don't like. Their own statements are never divisive,they're principled... election. Anies Baswedan is set to take on Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, Jakarta’s first Christian and ethnic Chinese governor, in a second-round vote on April 19. Purnama got the most votes in a first round, on February 15, but not by enough to avoid a run-off, unofficial counts show. Campaigning for the poll has been overshadowed by religious tensions, with protests led by hardline group Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) against Purnama, and calls for voters to choose a Moslem. Photographs of Baswedan meeting FPI leader Habib Rizieq were widely published in media, leading his critics to accuse him of tarnishing his reputation as a moderate Moslem. |
| Posted by:Fred |