Concerns over unfair elections continued apace among civil society and academic circles on Tuesday, marked by protests over perceived democratic backsliding and state interference, just two days before nearly 205 million registered Indonesians head to the polls.

The three-day cooling period to end months of election campaigning has been anything but quiet, with the three-horse race marred by ethics breaches as well as allegations of foul play and meddling at the highest level.

In Yogyakarta, thousands of university students gathered to stage a long march from the city’s Gadjah Mada University (UGM) to a famous three-way intersection on Jl. Gejayan, which was the site of numerous student-led rallies during the 1998 New Order demonstrations.

The movement, called Gejayan Memanggil (Gejayan Calling), has sought to address outgoing President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s perceived lack of impartiality.

Constitutionally barred from running for a third term, Jokowi and his political allies in government have faced accusations of misusing state powers to marshal support for election front-runner Prabowo Subianto, a former rival who was paired with the President’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka despite a controversial court ruling.

“Foul play in the 2024 general election must be faced with stern opposition, since it is clear it has been orchestrated by Jokowi and is being done systematically and on a massive scale,” the protest’s organizers stated in an Instagram post on Sunday rallying for a demonstration.

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