U.N. experts urge Indonesia to overturn Jakarta governor's blasphemy conviction

File Photo - Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama is seen inside a court during his trial for blasphemy in Jakarta, Indonesia May 9, 2017 in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Antara Foto/ Sigid Kurniawan/via REUTERS

GENEVA (Reuters) - U.N. experts urged Indonesia on Monday to free Jakarta's Christian governor, who was jailed this month for blasphemy - a conviction that risks encouraging Islamists to challenge secularism in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation.

Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, an ethnic Chinese popularly known as "Ahok", was jailed on May 9 for a longer-than-expected two years under a fatwa from Indonesia's highest Muslim clerical council and after aggressive media campaigns and violent protests.