Indonesian President’s son under investigation for blasphemy

Jakarta Police plan to summon Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s youngest son Kaesang Pangarep over a YouTube video.

July 06, 2017 12:13 pm | Updated 12:15 pm IST - JAKARTA

Former U.S. President Barack Obama is flanked by Indonesian President Joko Widodo (left) and Mr. Widodo’s son Kaesang Pangarep at the Bogor Presidential Palace in Bogor, West Java, Indonesia on June 30, 2017.

Indonesian police are investigating an allegation of blasphemy against the youngest son of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

Jakarta Police spokesman Argo Yuwono said on July 6, 2017 that police plan to summon Kaesang Pangarep for questioning after receiving a complaint about a video he uploaded to YouTube in May 2017.

The video entitled “Ask Daddy for a Project” a reference to children of politicians who seek business favours includes criticism of Indonesians who during recent sectarian tensions in the Muslim-majority nation declared they would refuse funeral rites for those who supported non-Muslims as leaders.

Indonesia’s draconian blasphemy law is often used to attack minorities and political foes. The former Governor of Jakarta, a Christian, is serving a two-year prison sentence for blasphemy after being sentenced in May 2017.

Top News Today

Access 10 free stories every month
Save stories to read later
Access to comment on every story
Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.