Jakarta Election Not a Victory for Radical Groups: Yenny Wahid

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Jakarta gubernatorial election is not a victory for radical groups, Jakarta-based Wahid Foundation director Yenny Wahid Yenny said to the United States Vice President Mike Pence in an interfaith dialogue at the Istiqlal Mosque.

Yenny felt she needed to explain to Vice President Pence about Jakarta election because foreign media had made reports on how moderate Muslims were losing Jakarta election against their radical counterparts. "It's not true," Yenny said in Jakarta on Thursday, April 20, 2017.

The daughter of the late former president Abdurrahman Wahid said that many Christians had also backed Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno. "Many of Anies [Baswedan] supporters are devout Christians," Yenny said.

Quick counts conducted by pollsters show that Anies Baswedan-Sandiaga Uno pair is leading 57 percent to Basuki Tjahaja Purnama-Djarot Saiful Hidayat with 43 percent.

As reported before, US Vice President Mike Pence is visiting Indonesia. Today, he held a bilateral meeting with President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla. After meeting with VP Kalla, Pence held a meeting with interfaith figures at the Istiqlal Mosque.

The figures attending the event were Reverend Henriette Lebang of the Communion of Churches in Indonesia, Ignatius Suharyo of the Bishops' Conference of Indonesia and K.S. Arsana of the Indonesian Hindu Youth Association, Yenny Wahid and Din Syamsuddin of Muhammadiyah.

ADITYA BUDIMAN