Jokowi not to Accomodate Racial-Based Protests

Jakarta (Antara) - Presidential candidate Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has voiced his zero-tolerance approach to racial-based protests of any kind if he is elected as president. During the presidential election debate here on Monday evening, Jokowi emphasized that if he was elected president, he would not accommodate any kind of protests based on "sara," an acronym for race, religion, and ethnicity. Jokowi stated that as the governor of Jakarta, he had appointed Susan as the Lenteng Agung village head, but there was a protest demanding her replacement as her religious background did not represent that of the majority there. "But in my judgment, Susan has undergone an open promotion selection and managerial competition, and therefore, I did not give in to the protest," Jokowi remarked in response to a question raised by a moderator about plurality in the country in the context of "Bhineka Tunggal Ika" (Unity in Diversity). Jokowi stressed that he was a firm believer in the principle of Bhineka Tunggal Ika, and it should be upheld by the people of the state and the nation. "There are many examples related to Bhineka Tunggal Ika, but I think it is final, and there is no need to dig it up because the most important thing is to implement it," Jokowi noted. (*)