We Spent The Night Outside Cipinang Prison With Ahok's Diehard Supporters

The atmosphere was somber as I arrived outside East Jakarta's notorious Cipinang penitentiary. It was midnight, but there were still more than 500 people gathered in the street outside the prison's gates.

Inside was the city's embattled governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, a man popularly known as Ahok who was just sentenced to two years behind bars for committing blasphemy.

Outside were Ahok's diehard supporters, many adorned in his trademark plaid checkered shirt. Some were defiant, shouting slogans and insults about Ahok's biggest rivals. Others were in tears, visibly sobbing as they peered through the prison's chain-link fence.

Most refused to leave. Acting Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat had offered himself up as collateral as long as Ahok would be allowed to serve out his term as a warden of the city, not the jail. The idea quickly took hold outside the prison. "We will wait here until Djarot's request to make Ahok a prisoner of the city is granted," one man shouted at the police.

The rallies are expected to continue today with a protest outside the headquarters of the National Police Mobile Brigade (BriMob), where Ahok was reportedly moved under the cover of night. He has already announced that he will file an appeal. The case is expected to hit the courts in a matter of weeks.