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Police fire tear gas at supporters during verdict reading
The police clashed with supporters of the losing Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket on Thursday as the Constitutional Court read out its ruling on the 2014 presidential election dispute submitted by the candidate pair
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he police clashed with supporters of the losing Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa presidential ticket on Thursday as the Constitutional Court read out its ruling on the 2014 presidential election dispute submitted by the candidate pair.
Tribunnews.com reported that rowdy supporters were seen attempting to make their way through barbed-wire barricades that isolated areas surrounding the court's headquarters on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat in Central Jakarta prior to the verdict reading on Thursday afternoon.
In response, the police fired tear gas at the unruly supporters, who continued to chant and yell protests.
During the verdict reading, the police clashed again with Prabowo-Hatta supporters as many tried to forcefully break through barricades to create an access point to the court's entry gate. The police responded once again by firing tear gas and water cannons, dispersing the unruly crowd.
Security officers have continued to blockade areas surrounding the court as it reads out its 300-page verdict document. As of 4 p.m., thousands of Prabowo-Hatta supporters were still crowding office areas near the court, including Indosat on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat and the Bank Indonesia compound on Jl. Thamrin.
The verdict will determine whether or not the Prabowo-Hatta camp's claims of electoral fraud and manipulation in the July 9 presidential election result announced by the General Elections Commission (KPU) are valid.
The Election Organizers Ethics Council recently sanctioned KPU chairman Husni Kamil Malik after he was proven guilty of not attending a KPU plenary meeting to determine this year's official presidential election candidates on May 31. (dyl/ebf)
