Jakarta Governor Race Heats Up With Ruckus Over Koran Comments
- Ahok seeking to become first elected Christian to post
- Contest seen as precursor to 2019 presidential elections
Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, also known as Ahok.
Photographer: Bay Ismoyo/AFP via Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
A three-way race to lead Indonesia’s largest city is turning into a potential test for religious tolerance in the world’s most populous Muslim nation.
Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as Ahok, is seeking to become the first Christian elected governor of Jakarta, a post that has been a springboard to the presidency. Yet days before the campaign’s official start he was questioned by police for four hours over claims his recent comments about the Koran amounted to blasphemy.