HRWG Calls On The Public Not To Vote For Presidential Candidates Who Produce Dynasty Politics And Can Make Indonesia An Authoritarian State

JAKARTA - The Indonesian Civil Society Coalition for International Human Rights Advocacy has officially declared its political position in the 2024 General Election.

This political stance is based on two alternative reports of the Indonesian civil society coalition for international human rights advocacy for economic, social and cultural issues submitted to the United Nations (UN) Economic, Social and Cultural Rights Committee with the title, The Dark Side of Indonesia's Development under Joko Widodo and alternative reports for civil and political issues to the UN Civil and Political Rights Committee with the title, Repressive Developmentalism and Sectarian Population in Indonesia.

These two shadow reports were compiled by a combination of more than 40 civil society groups. This report will be one of the ingredients of the Human Rights Committee and the Socio-Cultural Economy (Ekosob) to hold strategic dialogues with the Indonesian government on February 20-21 and March 11-12 2024 in Geneva, Switzerland.

First, the coalition sued and urged President Joko Widodo to resign from his position because he was wrong, not carrying out his mandate, namely to run the government fairly for all.

"Punishing Joko Widodo and his coalition socially by not choosing a pair of presidential and vice-presidential candidates who will only produce dynastic, ethical-intensive, and which will turn this country back into an authoritarian state and with exploitative agendas that damage the environment," said Executive Director of Human Rights Working Group (HRWG) Indonesia Daniel Awigra in an official statement, Monday, February 12.

The coalition also invites the public, especially students, laborers, farmers, fishermen, urban poor, young people, all victims of human rights violations, to unite against every repression, encourage a dignified, honest and fair political agenda, respect, protect, and fulfill human rights, fight corruption, collusion, and nepotism.

Furthermore, the coalition views that the Jokowi government has failed in carrying out its obligation to respect, protect and fulfill civil and political rights (sipol) as well as economic, social and cultural rights (ecosob).

The Jokowi government, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic and after that, is also considered to have made a number of market-oriented policies that actually undermine democracy, foster corruption, exploitative and extractive against natural resources that benefit a small part of the elite and their families and further distance vulnerable groups from getting their rights.

"From the monitoring and advocacy work carried out by members and their networks, the coalition stated that the Jokowi regime has committed many human rights violations and systematically by committing political corruption, including electoral crimes, in particular taking advantage of the pandemic and election situation to encourage an opportunistic exploitative authoritarian agenda," said Daniel.

At the end of 2023 and early 2024, the coalition also saw Jokowi's political behavior which damaged democracy for abusing power for the benefit of his group and family.

Starting from the case of serious violations of the code of ethics of the Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court which gave a banal decision that passed his son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka as a vice presidential candidate to the heavy ethical case of the Chairman of the General Elections Commission in the nomination of Prabowo-Gibran, all of which could damage the integrity of the election.

"This is the dark side of development under the government of Joko Widodo with exploitative authoritarian agendas realized through a process that seems democratic, through formal channels such as making laws, legal mechanisms, and elections," said Daniel.