Bawaslu Susun Bank Data Facing Potential Politicization Of SARA In The 2024 Election

Illustration of Bawaslu. (Antanews)

JAKARTA - The Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) is working with various parties to develop data banks. This effort is to prevent politicization related to ethnicity, religion, race, and intergroup or SARA in the 2024 General Election.

Bawaslu member Lolly Suhenty said the data bank was the basis for policy making to deal with alleged election violations by presenting characteristics and distribution as scientific studies.

"Bawaslu also intensively conducts voter education by involving community leaders, community empowerment organizations, FKUB (religious harmony forum), online and offline media, and all elements of society," said Lolly in a written statement, Thursday, December 7, quoted by Antara.

Bawaslu in collaboration with the Ministry of Communication and Information (Kominfo), TNI, Polri, Press Council, and social media platforms to prevent identity campaigns and provocations on social media and mass media.

"Currently, we are intensively conducting cyber surveillance patrols intensively to prevent potential politicization of identity," explained Lolly.

Bawaslu identified four indicators of SARA politicization in Indonesia, namely covering a campaign containing SARA sentiment on social media, identity campaigns in public places, rejection of candidate candidates based on SARA, and racial-based violence.

"If provocations and intimidation are not managed properly, the dynamics of conflict can develop quickly and become very violent or brutal, ending in clashes between groups, or prolonged mass unrest," he said.

In the 2024 Simultaneous Elections, there are 2,749 electoral districts (dapil) with a total voter population reaching 204,807,222 people, with polling stations (TPS) reaching 823,220.

The data includes voters of diaspora or Indonesian citizens (WNI) abroad.

The 2024 election was attended by 18 national political parties, namely the National Awakening Party (PKB), Gerindra Party, PDI-P, Golkar Party, NasDem Party, Labor Party, and the Indonesian Gelora Party.

Then, there are the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the Nusantara Awakening Party (PKN), the Hanura Party, the Garuda Party, the National Mandate Party (PAN), the Crescent Star Party (PBB), the Democratic Party, the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI), the Perindo Party, the United Development Party (PPP), and the Ummat Party.

The 2024 election was also attended by six local political parties, namely the Aceh Nanggroe Party, the Atjeh Beusaboh Tha'at and Taqwa Generation Party, the Aceh Darul Party, the Aceh Aceh Party, the Aceh Prosperous Justice Party, and the Acehnese People's Independent Solidity Party.

The 2024 General Election is held simultaneously to elect candidates for legislative members as well as the president and vice president on February 14, 2024.

The KPU has also received registrations for three presidential-cawapres candidates, namely Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar, Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD, and Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka. The election campaign period is set from November 28, 2023 to February 10, 2024.