Kivlan Zein to Be Questioned as Treason Suspect

Jakarta. Kivlan Zein, a retired Army general and strong supporter of defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, will be questioned as a treason suspect on Wednesday, a police spokesman said.

A member of the public, identified as Jalaludin, filed a police report early in May against Kivlan for allegedly calling for a "constitutional jihad" in the form of protests outside the offices of the General Elections Commission (KPU) and Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) in Central Jakarta. The aim of the protests was to exert pressure on the two agencies to disqualify Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, Prabowo's opponent in the 2019 presidential election.

A video clip that went viral on social media shows Kivlan urging opposition supporters to embark on mass protests. Police declared the former chief of staff of the Indonesian Army's Strategic Command (Kostrad) a suspect after analyzing the video.

Kivlan was previously questioned as a witness in the treason case against Eggi Sudjana, another strong supporter of Prabowo.

The immigration authorities issued a travel ban on Kivlan after a police request, but revoked it less than 24 hours later, reportedly because his passport was due to expire soon.

"Yes, he is a suspect. According to his lawyer, he will attend questioning at the offices of the Criminal Investigation Agency," National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Dedi Prasetyo told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday.

Under provisions in Indonesia's Criminal Code, Kivlan may face a maximum penalty of life imprisonment for treason.