Civil Society Coalition Condemns Halting of Election Recapitulation

Koalisi Masyarakat Sipil Kawal Pemilu Bersih [The Civil Society Coalition Guarding Clean Elections] believes that halting the vote recapitulation at the district level has the potential to lead to fraudulent practices and could undermine the integrity of voters’ voices. According to the coalition, this action contradicts the principle of the certainty of election stages, especially since the reason for the halt is linked to the accuracy of the data from the Election Recapitulation Information System (Sirekap), which is not an official calculation result.

“The coalition condemns the action of the General Election Commission (KPU) of Indonesia in issuing directives and orders to halt the vote recapitulation process. This action is an abuse of power, lacks legal basis, and has the potential to become fraudulent practice within the vote recapitulation process at the district level,” the coalition wrote in a press release (2/19).

Previously, based on the circular letter from the Tangerang City General Election Commission No.316/PL.01-SD/3671/2024 on February 18, 2024, which stated, “Based on the directive from the Indonesian General Election Commission (KPU) dated February 18, 2024, to ensure the quality of Sirekap data that will be used for the more accurate district-level recapitulation, the schedule for the plenary meeting of the District Election Committee (PPK) should be rescheduled to February 20, 2023, and for those already in progress, they should be suspended until February 20, 2024.” The coalition views the issue with Sirekap as being caused by the lack of serious and proper preparation by the Indonesian General Election Commission (KPU). This should not be an obstacle to continuing the recapitulation process, as the public must promptly know the election results.

“The vote recapitulation process must be carried out timely, transparently, and accountably. The KPU is obligated to safeguard the integrity of voters’ voices and expedite the vote recapitulation process, so that the official results of the 2024 Elections can be known to the public more quickly,” the coalition emphasized.

The coalition also urges the Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) to oversee and enforce the law against the actions of the KPU. According to the coalition, these actions are suspected serious violations because they halt the electoral process without legal basis. Additionally, the coalition calls on the Commission II of Indonesian House of Representatives to closely and seriously monitor the increasingly reckless electoral practices, which could potentially lead to systematic, structured, and massive electoral violations. []

Translated by Catherine Natalia