During a news conference at the Bawaslu RI Office in Jakarta on Sunday (Feb 11), Lolly Suhenty, a Bawaslu member, stated that the organization has conducted cyber patrols to aggressively monitor the accounts registered by election participants as well as their personal accounts.
She explained that the cyber patrolling aims to ensure there is no campaign activity registered on social media.
"Personal social media accounts should not incite and slander, as there is an Information and Electronic Transactions Law that applies, and Bawaslu can handle other legal infractions," Suhenty stated.
The Indonesian General Elections Commission (KPU) stipulates a period of silence on February 11-13, 2024. During that period, all activities related to the campaign directly or through social media are prohibited.
"Thus, all social media accounts registered with the KPU must be shut down. If it persists, it will be considered to fall in the realm of infractions and be handled accordingly. Furthermore, for social media platforms having personal profiles, it is Bawaslu's responsibility to pay attention," Suhenty affirmed.
She noted that in the process of supervising the activities of election participants on social media, Bawaslu had collaborated with the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.
Suhenty also advised voters to not offer money or commodities to the community during the silence and voting periods. Money politics -- sharing money or products for the campaign -- is considered to be an election violation.
"We both know Article 523, paragraph 2 (of the Election Law) during the silence period. If such acts are committed, then the sanctions are for election crimes. The sanctions are four years of imprisonment plus a fine of Rp48 million if I am not mistaken," she explained.
Furthermore, Chairman of Bawaslu RI Rahmat Bagja emphasized that giving money in any form, even digital money, is illegal.
He remarked that Bawaslu is working with the Center for Financial Transaction Reporting and Analysis (PPATK) to monitor these possibilities.
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Translator: Genta Tenri, Yuni Arisandy
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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