Citizens have been urged by Jakarta Police to not join the 2 December rally planned to protest against Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama's alleged blasphemy.
It was reported that police Chief Mochamad Iriawan has asked residents not to take part in the demonstration as Ahok has already been named suspect in the case and request them to let the law take its own course.
"Residents should not join the rally on Nov. 25 or on Dec. 2 since police have already named Ahok a suspect in the case," said Iriawan, as reported by kompas.com.
Muslim hardliners, grouped under the National Movement to Save Indonesian Ulema Council's edict (GNPF-MUI), have planned a massive rally to protest against the alleged profanities committed by the Chinese Christian governor Ahok and ask for his immediate resignation and arrest, reported the Jakarta Post.
The Confederation of Indonesian Workers Unions is also set to join the rally confirmed KSPI chairman Said Iqbal.
This is the second protest march organised by the Muslim conservatives since the 4 November demonstration when Jakarta city was flooded by thousands of jihadist demanding strict action against the governor.
During the previous rally, tens of thousands of Muslim hardliners took to the streets following this event to protest against Ahok. The protest soon accelerated into a bloody demonstration where gangs of jihadists torched police cars and attacked officers.
Police had to fire tear gas, water cannon and truncheons into thousands of rioting protesters to bring the situation under control. It was also reported that the angry mobs tried to enter the governor's housing complex in northern Jakarta but the police foiled the move.
Governor Ahok received flak for allegedly misquoting a verse from the Quran during one of his speeches in September. During the speech, Ahok criticised his opponents for citing a verse in the Quran which warns Muslims against forming an alliance with Christians and Jews saying that they were "lying". This led to an outrage and the governor was accused of criticising the Islamic holy text.
However, he has apologised for his mistakes by saying that he never intended to insult Islam and the Quran.
