No, this image does not show overseas voting results in Indonesian elections
- This article is more than one year old.
- Published on April 16, 2019 at 11:00
- 2 min read
- By AFP Indonesia
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The posts – for example this one published April 10, 2019, and shared more than 170 times since, and this one published the same day – claim that Prabowo Subianto, known as Prabowo, has won the overseas votes in all but two of the 11 countries listed.
Translated to English, the post’s Indonesian-language caption says:
“#2019PRABOWOPRESIDENT IS NON-NEGOTIABLE FOR THE PEOPLE OF INDONESIA #2019_remains_anti_communism_liberalism #SAVE_The Unitary State of Republic of Indonesia from COMMUNIST CHINA may God curse them and the traitor of the nation and the proxy of the communist China who are persistent for wanting to control our nation. Aminn my God #Number2 God willing will be blessed by Allah
#2019PRABOWOPRESIDENT
#vote_for_MUSLISM_LEGISLATIVE_CANDIDATE_ENDORSERS OF PrabowoSandi.”
Prabowo is running against President Joko Widodo in Indonesia’s upcoming poll. “02” is the ballot number of Prabowo and his running mate Sandiaga Uno while “01” is Widodo’s ballot number. Here is an official announcement from Indonesia’s election commission.
Below is a screenshot of one of the false Facebook posts:
The text in the image translates to English as: “The tadpoles would think this information is a hoax…!!! The early results of overseas votes are incredible..!!”
“Tadpoles” is a common reference to Widodo supporters. Here is a March 30, 2019, Jakarta Post report explaining why the incumbent’s sympathizers have gained the nickname.
The misleading post contains a table which claims that counted overseas votes in nine out of 11 countries listed in the picture give Prabowo the lead:
Overseas voting for the Indonesian elections is taking place between April 8 and 14, 2019, according to this regulation from Indonesia’s general election commission (KPU).
This document – the General Election Commission Regulation No 7/2017 on Steps, Programmes and Schedules of the 2019 Elections – sets out the steps and schedule for the upcoming elections.
On page 16 of 20 in the pdf document, the dates on which overseas votes will be counted are specified.
The document says:
“4) The counting of votes at overseas polling stations: starts on April 17, 2019 and ends on April 17, 2019
5) The announcement of counted overseas votes: starts on April 17, 2019 and ends on April 17, 2019.”
Below is a screenshot of the dates, circled in red:
KPU commissioner Evi Novida Ginting told AFP that the claims about the results of overseas voting were a “hoax”.
“All overseas votes would only be counted on April 17 simultaneously in all polling stations abroad,” she said in an April 10, 2019, interview.
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