SINGAPORE — Indonesians in Singapore have started casting their ballots, as overseas voting for Indonesia’s parliamentary elections begins ahead of the polls on Wednesday.

By 10.30am, about 2,000 eligible voters had cast their votes at the Indonesian Embassy in Chatsworth Road, where 36 voting booths have been set up.

Some started queuing outside the embassy as early as 5.30am, hours before the ballot opened at 8am.

An embassy spokesman told Channel NewsAsia that about 116,000 Indonesians have registered to vote, while another 13,000 are expected to submit their vote by post.

Most of those who were at the embassy this morning told Channel NewsAsia the procedure took less than 10 minutes.

Many found the process smooth, saying it was better organised than their last voting experience here in 2009.

The embassy spokesman attributed this partly to a new barcode system, introduced by the General Election Committee of Overseas Electorate in Singapore.

With the system, registration is faster, while ensuring that the votes are confidential.

The ballot closes at 6pm today, although the spokesman said the hours may be extended, depending on the turnout.

Votes will only be counted on Wednesday, when Indonesia goes to the polls.

The hustings ended yesterday, followed by a three-day cooling-off period that started today for Indonesians to think about who they want to vote for on Wednesday. CHANNEL NEWSASIA