On Wednesday, despite the police ban on rallies in front of the MK building ahead of the ruling, hundreds of people, including those from the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), staged a peaceful rally echoing their demand for the court's fair decision.
Bogor, W Java (ANTARA) - The Indonesian capital, Jakarta, is bracing for the Constitutional Court (MK) verdict on the presidential election result dispute Thursday in the hope that it will be accepted by the disputing parties and people at large. On Wednesday, despite the police ban on rallies in front of the MK building ahead of the ruling, hundreds of people, including those from the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), staged a peaceful rally echoing their demand for the court's fair decision.

The demonstrators packed the Arjuna Wijaya Statue area on Medan Merdeka Barat Road near the National Monument (Monas) Square in Central Jakarta. During the rally, several figures, including FPI leader KH Ahmad Sobri Lubis, delivered speeches.

The Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno pair has repeatedly called on their supporters not to stage a rally leading up to the MK ruling on their petition against the result.

In anticipation of the ruling, 47,000 security personnel from the police, military, and the Jakarta administration have been deployed to secure the Constitutional Court building and vital installations in Jakarta.

Deadly riots had erupted in Jakarta after the General Elections Commission (KPU) had declared the Joko Widodo (Jokowi)-Ma'ruf Amin pair as winners of the presidential elections held on May 21, 2019.

Nine people had died in the post-election rioting, the police reported. Amnesty International Indonesia divulged Tuesday that a dozen personnel of the Police Mobile Brigade (Brimob) allegedly indulged in physical violence against demonstrators and people they arrested in Kampung Bali, Central Jakarta, during the rioting.

Considering the fact that the elections had resulted in dividing society, the MK ruling is expected to be a final and binding solution.

To this end, the Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI), Wednesday, called on all elements of the nation, especially Muslims, to accept the ruling.

"The MUI appeals to the people, at large, to accept the court's ruling wholeheartedly and sincerely, as it is final and binding," the council's Deputy Chairman, Zainut Tauhid Saadi, told local journalists.

The MK's spokesman Fajar Laksono had earlier noted that the court's nine judges would deliver their final decision Thursday or a day earlier than June 28, set for announcing the ruling.

The MK has accrued facts from both camps during a week-long hearing since Friday (June 14), and a Consultative Meeting of Judges (RPH) has been underway since June 23 to seek the opinions of all the judges, he revealed.

The MK ruling should be viewed as the "best binding decision" to resolve the dispute and put to rest all differences, Saadi remarked.

During the week-long hearing, the people, at large, could witness the hearing in the courtroom that had run in a smooth and orderly manner by adhering to the principles of justice, fairness, independence, transparency, and professionalism.

Hence, the MUI has called on the entire nation to trust the court's nine-judge panel that will reach a final decision fairly, honestly, and responsibly for the sake of the nation, state, and Almighty Allah SWT, he emphasized.

The MUI has appealed to the people, at large, to maintain calm, avoid unlawful and violent acts, and voice their aspirations in a peaceful and orderly manner.

The MUI lauded all parties, particularly the two presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs for following legal and constitutional procedures to resolve the dispute, according to Saadi.

"Taking the legal course in solving the dispute is a good lesson for our people in practising democracy in a healthy, mature, and dignified manner," it said.

The MUI has urged community members, divided by their political preferences, to restore the spirit of brotherhood as sons of one nation.

Lewi Sawor, a respected priest in Papua Province, has also sent a similar message to the entire nation across the archipelago.

All parties could express their views on or judge the court's ruling but they should bow to it and respect it, according to this head of the Mimika Prebistery of the Evangelical Christian Church (GKI) in West Papua.

By doing so, the entire nation will avoid the danger to Indonesia's unity, Sawor said, adding that the people at large, including those living in Papua Province, had watched the court's week-long hearing on the dispute on television.

As a church institution, GKI's Mimika Prebistery is also responsible for maintaining the integrity of the nation and state. Therefore, the church fully supports the Constitutional Court's nine judges for making a fair decision.

"The court's judges have been trusted by God and the people of Indonesia to become the guardian of the dignity of the State Constitution," he said.

In the end, the judges will decide whether to accept or reject the petition on the election result that Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno pair had lodged, he said.

As a result, there would be parties that are satisfied with the court's ruling and those who would be dissatisfied with it. However, Sawor suggested that everyone should accept the MK decision for the sake of a united Indonesia. (INE)

EDITED BY INE


Reporter: Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Eliswan Azly
Copyright © ANTARA 2019