Kate Lamb, Jakarta – Indonesian police have arrested eight people for alleged treason including Rachmawati Soekarnoputri, the daughter of Indonesia's founding father, hours before a 200,000-strong protest in Jakarta against its Christian governor on Friday.
Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, known as Ahok, has incensed conservative Muslims over allegedly blasphemous comments he made about the Qur'an in an election campaign. Protesters have demanded that the governor, who is to face trial for the remarks, is sent to jail.
Waving banners that read "Jail Ahok, the law must be fair", demonstrators marched through the streets for the second time in a month.
The case of Ahok, who is also a member of the country's ethnic Chinese Indonesian minority, has opened up a political Pandora's box in Indonesia.
Rachmawati reportedly held a press conference on Thursday in which she called upon those joining Friday's protest to occupy the parliament building. Ahmad Dhani, a rock star and political hopeful who accompanied Rachmawati on Thursday, was arrested on the same charges.
Hours before the anti-Ahok protest, police announced that eight people had been arrested for suspected treason.
"Eight people have been arrested and are undergoing interrogation by the Jakarta police. We will wait for the interrogation results," national police spokesman Insp Gen Boy Rafli Amar said on Friday. Two others were arrested for alleged crimes under Indonesia's electronic information law.
Police did not immediately release the full names of those arrested but a lawyer for Rachmawati Soekarnoputri, the daughter of Indonesia's first president, confirmed she was among them. She is also the younger sister of Megawati Soekarnoputri – a former president herself, and the political patron of the current president, Joko Widodo.
"Yes, she has been arrested. Police officers arrived at her home at 5am and took her at 6am," said lawyer Aldwin Rahardian.
It is also believed that two former military generals, Kivlan Zein and Adityawarman, and activist Sri Bintang Pamungkas, were also among those arrested for alleged treason. Under the Indonesian criminal code, treason carries a maximum life sentence.
Ahok supporters say that in the world's largest Muslim majority nation, his case is a test of the country's commitment to pluralism and tolerance. Others have suggested the protests point to rising religious conservatism, or nefarious political moves to undermine the president.
But Aleksius Jemadu, a professor from Pelita Harapan University in Jakarta, says Friday's arrests should not be a great cause for concern.
"It's good the government has been firm in establishing the rule of law so those accused of bad intentions to change the government, or to topple the government, should be held responsible for what they planned to do," he said, "In the eyes of the public it's good the government has been firm in order to ensure the supremacy of law."
Crowds had started to thin by the afternoon after the peaceful protest on Friday, but a demonstration against the governor turned violent after dark last month, with protesters burning several police trucks and officers using teargas to disperse the crowd. Demonstrators had called on the president to come and meet them, a demand that was ignored.
In an apparent move to appease the crowd on Friday, Widodo joined Friday prayers at the national monument, commending the peaceful gathering and encouraging people to go home safely.