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Indonesia election: The ‘four-finger’ salute and how Jokowi spurred its spread

2024-02-04 00:00:00.0 海峡时报-亚洲原网页

JAKARTA – For months, Indonesia’s three presidential contenders have been brandishing hand signs matching their election registration numbers, but now, a new “four-finger” movement has gone viral.

It signals to voters to choose either candidate No. 1, Mr Anies Baswedan, or No. 3, Mr Ganjar Pranowo.

The campaign is the latest initiative to sideline current front-runner and candidate No. 2, Mr Prabowo Subianto, who is seen as having President Joko Widodo’s backing.

Mr John Muhammad, president of the Green Party of Indonesia, started the campaign on Jan 25 with an Instagram post that stated: “Four fingers, express your choice to avoid Prabowo-Gibran”.

In less than a week, Mr John’s Instagram post has garnered over 15,000 likes. The numbers are even higher on X, where a post on the campaign by user @gitaputrid from Jan 26 has been viewed more than 1.4 million times, shared over 13,000 times and liked by some 26,000 users.

Mr Prabowo is running with Solo Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who is Mr Widodo’s elder son.

Mr Gibran’s vice-presidential candidacy has been controversial, as Indonesia’s Constitutional Court issued a special ruling in October 2023 that effectively allowed him to run despite being younger than 40, the minimum age required to contest the election. He was also accused of disrespectful behaviour during official debates and of campaign violations.

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But what really got the movement going is the perception that Mr Widodo, or Jokowi as he is commonly known, is interfering in the elections in a bid to drum up support for his son’s ticket, observers told The Straits Times.

Mr Made Supriatma, an ISEAS – Yusof Ishak Institute visiting fellow, narrowed it down to Mr Widodo saying on Jan 24 that he could openly support and campaign for candidates participating in the Feb 14 presidential election. He said this with his would-be successor standing at his side.

The President clarified in a recorded statement two days later that he was simply replying to journalists who had asked about ministers participating in the hustings.

He stressed that his words should not be taken out of context, and held up a large piece of paper stating how the president and vice-president are allowed to participate in election campaigns, according to Indonesian law.

President of political party Green Party of Indonesia John Muhammad started the campaign on Jan 25 with an Instagram post that stated: “Four fingers, express your choice to avoid Prabowo-Gibran”. PHOTO: JOHNMUHAMMAD_/INSTAGRAM

Critics and some netizens have accused Mr Widodo of using his position to convince people to vote for Mr Prabowo.

“The perceived injustice fuelling the emergence of the four-finger movement is rooted in the belief that Jokowi has manipulated legal interpretations to favour specific candidates,” said Mr Made.

Five days after the President’s comments on Jan 24, he was seen eating bakso (meatball soup) at a roadside stall with Mr Prabowo. They had met for dinner in Jakarta on Jan 5 as well – another meeting that was publicised.

Mr Widodo has also been reported to the Election Supervisory Body, after his wife sparked controversy for allegedly performing Prabowo-Gibran’s two-finger salute on Jan 23.