Source: thejakartapost.com
After years of persecution and discrimination, the nation’s minorities have said they will go to the polls this year to support legislative and presidential candidates who uphold freedom of religion.
As many as 66 displaced Ahmadis, who have been taking shelter at Wisma Transito in Mataram, West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), for more than eight years, were disenfranchised from the regional election last year due to their “unclear” residence.
They said they did not care about the regional election, but added that the upcoming legislative and presidential elections were different, and that this time they would fight for their right to vote.
Nasaruddin Ahmadi, leader of a local Ahmadiyah community, told The Jakarta Post on Thursday that after struggling for months, he and other eligible voters in the community had finally been registered to vote. Though it may result in little progress to their current situation as a religious minority, they planned to vote anyway.
“To be honest, I’m not sure whether it’s worth voting; we cast our votes in the 2009 presidential election, and look at what happened to us. However, we remain loyal to the country regardless of the discrimination we experience,” Nasaruddin said.
The fate of the Ahmadis in …continue reading at thejakartapost.com
Categories: Ahmadiyyat: True Islam, Asia, Countries, Indonesia, Islam