Communities join to combat violence

CITY Sat, 03/12/2011 1:12 PM

Communities join to combat violence

Bagus BT Saragih and Irawaty Wardany, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Without using the government’s repressive tactics for handling sectarian violence, some community groups are joining hands to promote a pluralist and humanistic face for religions in the country.

“We can see that the government has been ignorant in handling cases of religious violence that have frequently occurred in this country recently, therefore we are making our own way by working with other moderate groups in society to improve conditions,” Moderate Muslim Society chair Zuhairi Miswari told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

He said they were working together to promote the peaceful and humanistic face of religion by participating in various anti-violence dialogues with religious communities in the city.

Aside from promoting understanding through interreligious dialogues, the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP) is also reflecting this principle by allowing people from any religion to join them.

“Anyone from any religion can join us because religion is something related to somebody’s freedom to make a choice,” ICRP general secretary Johannes Hariyanto said.

He said people in the ICRP considered religion basically a personal choice and not something somebody is born with, which cannot be changed.

Both Zuhairi and Johannes regretted the actions of some who have perpetuated violence in the name of religion.

“They are not only violating the law but also the constitution. Unfortunately those violations are justified by some laws and decrees,” Johannes said.

He was referring to regional regulations and bylaws, the 1965 Blasphemy Law and the 2008 joint ministerial decree banning members of Ahmadiyah in Indonesia from propagating their religious beliefs, but which allowed them to maintain their faith and perform their daily religious duties.

“Any efforts to bar Ahmadiyah followers from performing their rituals are against not only the 1945 Constitution but also a number of laws,” Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) coordinator Haris Azhar said Friday.

He cited Article 28 of the Constitution, which guarantees every citizen religious rights.

Regulations made by provincial, regency and city administrations can be reviewed by the Supreme Court if they are considered out of line with higher regulations or laws.

As of March 2011, 12 local administrations have issued regulations banning Ahmadis from practicing their religion. The latest regions include East Java province, West Java province, South Sumatra province, Pandeglang regency and Samarinda municipality.

One province where religious violence has frequently occurred is West Java province.

On Friday, another assault of Ahmadis took place in Ciaruteun, Bogor, when hundreds of people suddenly attacked four homes of Ahmadiyah members.

According to Ahmadi spokesman Firdaus Mubarik, hundreds of people, including the perpetrators of Cisalada incident that took place in November of last year, suddenly ran over an Ahmadi after a provocative Friday sermon at the local mushollah (small mosque).

Fortunately, no casualties occurred during the incident, and the police took six people into custody.

That incident was only one in a series of violence in the name of religion, including the brutal murder of three Ahmadis in Cikeusik, Banten, last month.

Zuhairi blamed the joint ministerial decree, saying it was a “license to kill” for people who opposed Ahmadiyah. “The joint decree plus its derivatives became justification for [people] to do violence towards Ahmadis”.

According to the Center for Legal and Policy Studies (PSHK), most of the local bans on Ahmadiyah were made based on the 1965 Blasphemy Law. A number of NGOs filed a judicial review with the Constitutional Court last year to challenge that law. But, the court rejected the request and upheld the law

“The law is already too old and no longer in line with the current situation,” Fajri Nursyamsi from the PSHK said.

Therefore, Fajri urged the government and the House of Representatives to speed up deliberations of the religious tolerance bill. “The bill can accommodate more relevant situations and replace the old blasphemy law,” he said.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/03/12/communities...

Does SBY have the guts to ban violent groups?

OPINION Sat, 03/12/2011 1:03 PM

Does SBY have the guts to ban violent groups?

Pandaya, Jakarta

It looked like there would be a showdown when President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono promised to ban violent organizations and the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) — the obvious intended target — retorted that it would start a revolution if the President failed to meet their demands that Ahmadiyah be dissolved by March 1.

The timing of the war of words has never been more critical, occurring only a few days after violent hard-line Muslims stormed an Ahmadi residence in Cikeusik, Banten, and killed three people and others attacked three churches in Temanggung, Central Java.

But, as of today, the President has yet to do anything to make good on his promise, which received mixed reactions from the weary public. It could be just another bluff given that he has made the same threat at least three times since 2006.

But, the FPI has not done anything yet either, apart from a small street demonstration it jointly organized with other radical Muslim groups like the Muslims Forum and Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia in Jakarta late last month.

In numerous interviews with the media, FPI leaders promised to topple President Yudhoyono should he refuse to ban Ahmadiyah, the way the Jasmine Revolution in Tunisia thrashed the authoritarian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

In fact, the whole affair has only revealed how weak Yudhoyono’s government is.

When addressing the National Press Day celebration on Feb. 9, SBY ordered his aides to ban violent organizations.

But, none of his most authoritative aides: Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi, Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, Attorney General Basrif Arief and National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo seemed to heed his orders.

Instead, Gamawan hosted a meeting with top leaders of the notorious FPI at his office on Feb. 16, exactly a week after Yudhoyono made his threat. Smiling broadly, Gamawan told waiting journalists that he and FPI leaders Habib Rizieq and Munarman exchanged opinions on how deal with Ahmadiyah.

Meanwhile, Suryadharma has been busy blaming the Ahmadis for the Cikeusik tragedy and wanting to ban Ahmadiyah entirely.

Even more mind boggling, the Attorney General’s Office spokesperson Marwan Effendi lauded local governments that caved in to radical demands and banned Ahmadiyah in their areas.

Yudhoyono has not made any comments on these glaring insubordinations. What has happened is that more regencies and cities are toying with the idea of banning Ahmadiyah in the name of regional autonomy.

Gamawan, like Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali, is known for his anti-Ahmadiyah stance. Along with then attorney general Hendarman Supandji, they issued a joint decree banning Ahmadis from conducting religious activities outside their community. When Gamawan was the governor of West Sumatra, he was one of the regional heads who introduced the controversial sharia-inspired morality bylaws.

Ahmadiyah followers have suffered from discrimination and physical attacks since the Indonesian Ulema Council called the cult heretical in a 1980 fatwa and reaffirmed it in 2005.

For hard-liners, the controversial decree has become a license to bully Ahmadis with the tacit support of the local police and government bureaucrats. They vow there will be no peace until Yudhoyono formally bans Ahmadiyah, which they consider heretical because it does not recognize the Islamic orthodoxy that Muhammad is the last prophet.

Interestingly, while Yudhoyono has yet to prove he was not bluffing, such provinces as Banten, East Java, West Java, Lampung and South Kalimantan have boldly announced that they have banned Ahmadiyah.

This is a worrying development that can give way to more cases of violence against Ahmadis, whose numbers are estimated at 200,000, living in enclaves across the archipelago.

Yudhoyono’s inaction in banning violent vigilante groups as he promised to do has given added credence to the perception that he is afraid of the small but noisy hard-line groups.

It has also left many wondering if violent radicals are enjoying the backing of some extremely powerful but corrupt individuals in the police, military, political parties or interest groups who are using terror for their personal or institutional interests.

Yudhoyono has mishandled the FPI’s threat to topple him like the Tunisians did with their despot. He was ridiculed when his spokesperson Julian A. Pasha promised to take measures against the FPI.

His critics argue that the President should have ignored the FPI threat because the group is just too small to make an impact politically, because moderate majority Muslims do not share its brand of Islam. His overreaction has made it as if the FPI were so important that mainstream politics has to reckon with it.

Political analyst Hermawan Sulistyo says the FPI, which has only a few thousand members, has no financial and human resources to mobilize the masses for a revolution as it brags that it has.

To start a revolution it would need at least 100,000 people militant enough to demonstrate for at least four weeks, which would also require a lot of money, he says.

Hermawan may be right. The gargantuan anti-Yudhoyono demonstrations that the FPI promised have not manifested. And, Yudhoyono seems to have forgotten his threat as well, for pressing new issues keep arising.

This whole political comedy should not distract Yudhoyono from the real issue: protecting minorities and punishing people who break the law, not banning organizations, as the right to organize is guaranteed by the Constitution.

The author is a staff writer at The Jakarta Post

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/03/12/does-sby...groups.html

Fight Ahmadis With Prayers, Not Punches: Military Chief

HOME

Fight Ahmadis With Prayers, Not Punches: Military Chief

Yuli Krisna & Dofa Fasila | March 08, 2011

Bandung. A military commander in West Java has warned against using brute force against the Ahmadiyah, saying there were more “elegant” methods to suppress the group.

Maj. Gen. Moeldoko, chief of the Siliwangi Regional Command, said on Monday that the use of violence against the minority Muslim sect would attract unwanted attention from international human rights groups.

“We should be handling [the Ahmadiyah] with gloved hands, and not with violence,” he said. “Through the preaching of Islamic teachings, let their faith be weakened. [We must] guide them to follow the right path.”

“I believe this is a far more elegant and respectful way, even in the eyes of the world. We already have the tools to implement this plan,” he added.

Moeldoko was speaking after he met with West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan, the provincial police chief and other officials on Monday to discuss implementing a ban on the sect’s activities.

Ahmad had issued a gubernatorial regulation on Friday barring Ahmadis from practicing their faith in the province.

The ban, adopted by at least 10 other regional governments, was based on a 2008 joint ministerial decree declaring the Ahmadiyah a deviant sect for its divergent view on Islamic prophets. The decree prohibits Ahmadis from spreading their beliefs.

In a tactic he dubbed “an attack of prayer rugs,” Moeldoko suggested converting the sect to Islam by opening their mosques to mainstream Muslims.

“I ask all of you [Muslims] to sit inside their mosques, which are exclusive for the Ahmadis,” he said. “Let us fill their mosques with Islamic activities and the correct teachings of Islam.”

Similarly, the West Java governor said the sect’s mosques should be accessible to all mainstream believers.

“All mosques believed to belong to the Ahmadiyah can be used by anybody and everybody,” he said. “A mosque, after all, should not belong to a certain community. It is open to each and every Muslim.”

The governor also said the sect’s members should be invited to join other Muslims during Friday afternoon prayers.

“Let us put all of our prayer mats side by side. Islam after all, does not teach exclusivity. It does not teach us to close ourselves up,” he said.

The Ahmadiyah, founded in India in 1889, has been targeted by hard-liners in a series of bloody riots and clashes across the archipelago in recent months.

In the latest sign of simmering religious tensions, a group of people in Bandung were forced to dig up the body of an Ahmadi from a tomb on Thursday and abandon it in a graveyard.

The Ahmadiyah said the incident was “troubling” and constituted an attack on the sect.

“If this matter had been communicated to us, or if the body had been buried on land belonging to the Ahmadiyah, we wouldn’t have this problem,” Ahmad said on Monday.

Over the past few weeks, Islamic organizations have demanded that the government disband the sect, triggering heated public debate on religious rights in Indonesia.

Contrary to his peers in other regions, however, Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo vowed not to ban Ahmadis from practicing their faith.

He said Djoko Suyanto, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs, had warned officials against enforcing such prohibitions.

“His instructions were clear. There should not be a gubernatorial decree or any kind of regulation issued in this country that would violate the Constitution,” Fauzi said on Monday.

He said the 2008 ministerial decree listed “everything needed to ensure security, order and harmony” in the capital.

Earlier, Fauzi had suggested following East and West Java’s lead in issuing regulations to ban Ahmadiyah activities. However, Fauzi backtracked on Monday after his proposal earned widespread public criticism.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/fight...chief/427316

Fauzi Bowo U-Turn: No Ahmadiyah Ban

HOME

Fauzi Bowo U-Turn: No Ahmadiyah Ban

Dofa Fasila | March 08, 2011

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo says a city ban on Ahmadiyah is now unlikely. (JG Photo)

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo on Monday backed away from comments in which he suggested his administration was considering following the lead of West and East Java in imposing restrictions on the minority Ahmadiyah sect.

Fauzi, who drew widespread criticism from Jakarta Globe Web site and Facebook followers for suggesting the capital could implement similar regulations, said the administration would not place bans on Ahmadiyah.

He said he would follow the instructions issued by Djoko Suyanto, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs.

“His instructions were clear,” Fauzi said. “There should not be a gubernatorial decree or any kind of regulation issued in this country that is in violation of the Constitution.”

Initially, Fauzi said the administration would first analyze and review the controversial regulations issued in the Indonesian provinces.

“In any case, everything that is needed in order to ensure security, order and harmony in the lives of Jakartans is already listed in the [2008] joint ministerial decree,” Fauzi said.

The 2008 joint ministerial decree prohibits Ahmadiyah from proselytizing, though critics say the legislation encourages attacks on the sect.

There are widespread concerns Indonesia is becoming less tolerant toward minority faiths.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/fauzi...ban/427263

Kontras accuses police of publicity stun

NATIONAL Mon, 03/07/2011 1:13 AM

Kontras accuses police of publicity stun

The Jakarta Post

JAKARTA: The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) fears a police move to name three police officers suspects in a planned attack on Ahmadiyah followers in Cikeusik was merely a ploy to shore up public support.

In February, a hard-line mob attacked Ahmadis in Cikeusik, Pandeglang, Banten, murdering three Ahmadis and seriously injuring several others.

“Suspects from the groups that took part in the attack should not have been named,” Kontras coordinator Haris Azhar said, adding that he feared the move was merely cosmetic.

Haris said that it would be unwise for the police to only publicly disclose the total number of suspects they had arrested without identifying the mastermind behind the incident.

“Don’t probe only those involved in the attack. The police must arrest those behind the attack,” he said.

The National Police on Friday named three Cikeusik Police officers suspects for negligence resulting in loss of life in the attack, a violation of the Criminal Code.

The police have so far named 12 suspects in the incident, as well as one Ahmadi.

The fallout from the incident has seen four high-ranking police officers removed from their posts while 37 Cikeusik and Pandeglang Police officers are also undergoing questioning in connection to the attack. — JP

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/03/07/kontras...stun.html

Police Say Ahmadis Wanted Banten Raid to Happen, Name 14 Suspects

HOME

Police Say Ahmadis Wanted Banten Raid to Happen, Name 14 Suspects

Farouk Arnaz | March 06, 2011

Recent violence targeting the Ahmadiyah community in the Cikeusik subdistrict of Banten only erupted because the Ahmadis wanted it to happen, the National Police’s chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Ito Sumardi said on Thursday.

The Feb. 6 attack saw some 1,500 people attack Ahmadiyah members who had refused to leave the house of a local leader of the sect in Umbulan village. Three Ahmadis were killed.

“I would like to quote one Ahmadi [we questioned] as saying he did physical exercises every day. The Ahmadis were also equipped with spears, slingshots, machetes and two sacks of stones,” Ito said. He then said the Ahmadis wanted the clash to happen.

“According to the theories of victimology, this clash did not merely occur because of insufficient numbers of police personnel dispatched to the site. It happened because the victims wanted the clash to take place.”

Ito added that a total of 14 suspects have so far been named in the case, including 12 from among the attacking mob.

“We are still hunting for one of the suspects, Abrori. He was from Gadod in Pandeglang district. He assaulted the victims until they died,” he said.

Ito also said a police officer and one Ahmadi had been named suspects. He refused to identify the police officer, but he said the Ahmadi suspect was named Deden Sudjana, a man who led 16 others in safeguarding the home that was attacked.

This is not the first time Deden is declared a suspect, but police backtracked on Feb. 18 on the earlier decision to name Deden a suspect for his presumed role in the violence.

Deden was allegedly seen in a video of the attack circulating on the Internet, asking a police officer to let the assault take place as 1,500 people descend on the house in Umbulan.

“Deden has been accused of provocation, beating, throwing [objects] and possession a sharp weapon. He is also guilty of disobeying police orders at the scene. His incitement triggered the clash, when he said that if police cannot control the masses, [they should] let the assault take place,” Ito told reporters.

He confirmed that a police officer had been charged in the case for violating the police’s code of ethical conduct, as well as Article 359 on negligence resulting in the death of a human being.

A police source separately identified the suspect as Chief. Brig. T.B. Ade Sumardi, the leader of the Sabhara division at the Cikeusik Police, charged with protection, patrol and anti-riot duties. The source said Ade was at the scene but failed to prevent the incident from happening.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/police-say.../426623

Muhammadiyah demands firm against on Ahmadiyah

NATIONAL Fri, 03/04/2011 8:10 PM

Muhammadiyah demands firm against on Ahmadiyah

Antara, Jakarta

Muhammadiyah Chairman Din Syamsuddin has urged the government to take firm measures against Islamic sect Ahmadiyah, which believers are constantly under a threat of violence from the predominantly Sunni Muslims in the country.

“We ask the government not to let the problem drag on, because by ignoring and letting the issue continue, impatient people could take the law into their own hands,” Din said Friday after a dialog with Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi in Jakarta, state news agency Antara reported.

Also attending the dialog on Ahmadiyah with the home affairs minister were leaderships of Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), both were among the largest Muslim mass organizations in Indonesia.

“Take firm action as soon as possible,” Din said because delaying to address the issue would provoke instability.

The state must not stand still when there is a group or organization asking other religious believers to join them, while the teaching insults Muslims, he said.

“It will create social unrest. The state must be present here, the government has the authority to enforce the law in order to prevent any unrest. But it should not take too long,” he said.

He suggested that the government should intensify giving guidance to Ahmadiyah followers. Islamic mass organizations are ready to help the government guide them, according to the Muhammidyah chairman.

“I personally would like to call on Ahmadiyah followers to come back to Islam, that Prophet Muhammad SAW is the last one. Islam clearly rejects a new prophet after Prophet Muhammad SAW,” he said.

Besides Din Syamsuddin, Muhammadiyah leaders attending the meeting with the minister were Muhammadiyah Secretary General Agung Danarto and Majelis Tarjih Chairman Syamsul Anward.

From NU, those who were present were NU Secretary General Syuhud, Deputy Chairman As`ad Said Ali, dan Katib Am Malik Madany.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved
URL: www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/03/04/...ahmadiyah.html

After East Java, West Java Bans All of Ahmadiyah’s Activities

HOME

After East Java, West Java Bans All of Ahmadiyah’s Activities

Yuli Krisna & Eras Poke | March 04, 2011

Bandung. West Java joined a string of other regional governments on Thursday in banning activities of the Ahmadiyah sect.

West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan said he issued a gubernatorial regulation, No. 12 of 2011, banning the activities of the Ahmadiyah in the province. He said it was effective immediately.

“This gubernatorial regulation is a follow-up to the joint ministerial decree and a 12-point joint agreement which was also signed by representatives of the Ahmadiyah,” Ahmad said.

He was referring to a 2008 joint ministerial decree that prohibits the Ahmadiyah from practicing their faith in public and spreading their beliefs. The decree, which stopped short of banning the sect altogether, has been criticized by human rights activists as it is frequently used to justify violence against the Ahmadiyah community.

The joint agreement Ahmad referred to was recently signed and outlined some of the prohibitions on Ahmadiyah activity.

He said the gubernatorial regulation was based on the desire of the government to prevent any social conflict from breaking out because of the activities of the Ahmadiyah, which many mainstream Muslims consider a deviant sect.

“We are not in a position to dissolve the Ahmadiyah organization, but we are in a position to follow up on the joint ministerial decree and the 12-point agreement,” h e said.

The regulation prohibits Ahmadis from trying to spread Ahmadiyah teachings orally, in writing or through electronic media. That also means all signboards containing the name of the organization must be taken down from public places, including mosques and schools. Ahmadiyah attributes may no longer be visible anywhere in West Java.

“Ahmadiyah mosques are mosques for all. All Muslims should be allowed to enter those mosques,” Ahmad said. He added that religious authorities will also organize Islamic events in mosques identified as Ahmadiyah mosques to put an end to alleged exclusivism there.

The West Java regulation forbids people from launching any unlawful action against the Ahmadiyah community, but it also calls on the public to help monitor and report any violation by Ahmadiyah members.

Saerodji, who heads the West Java office for religious affairs, said there were some 17,000 Ahmadis in the province.

Sugiyanto, head of the West Java High Prosecutor’s Office, said the regulation was aimed at protecting Ahmadis from the attacks they had experienced in the past.

“We want to protect the Ahmadiyah community from anarchic actions. If there are violations of the 12-point agreement, let the authorities deal with it,” Sugiyanto said.

“This is no longer a mere call but has been laid down into a written regulations. The public should not take matters into their own hands.”

West Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Suparni Parto said the regulation was a good solution and added that police would now no longer hesitate to take action against whomever violated it.

The spokesman for the Ahmadiyah community in the western part of West Java, Rafiq Ahmad Sumadi Gandakusuma, told the Jakarta Globe they had not been invited to discuss the new regulation.

Earlier this week, authorities in Surabaya, the country’s second-largest city and capital of East Java, issued a similar regulation banning the display of any Ahmadiyah attributes and any efforts by the group to spread its faith in the province.

In the province of Banten, Lebak district recently said it would issue a bylaw banning the Ahmadiyah, and Pandeglang district already issued such a decree on Feb. 21.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/after...activities/426642

Ministers Back Moves to Tighten Grip on Ahmadiyah

NEWS

Minister’s Call to Outlaw Ahmadiyah Angers Non-Governmental Organizations

amelia Pasandaran, Ulma Haryanto & Ronna Nirmala
| March 02, 2011

At the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle, supporters of the Islamic People’s Forum (FPI) united behind the slogan ‘Ban Ahmadiyah or [Face a] Revolution’. (JG Photo/Yudhi Sukma Wijaya)

As thousands of hard-liners gathered at Jakarta’s Hotel Indonesia traffic circle demanding the immediate disbandment of the Ahmadiyah, the Indonesian government voiced its support of moves adopted by a string of local administrations aimed at further restricting the sect’s activities.

“It is the authority of the regional head [to issue decrees on Ahmadis],” Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar said on Tuesday at the Presidential Palace. “Ahmadis insist on violating the law by spreading their beliefs. Religious freedom should not be translated into desecration of religion.”

Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic sect, has long been at the center of a dispute between human rights activists that support its existence and Islamic hard-liners that want it disbanded.

Thousands of demonstrators from the Islamic People’s Forum (FUI) – including those supporting the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) – rallied toward the National Monument Square, with many in the crowds vowing they would continue to demonstrate until they see Ahmadiyah banned entirely.

The government in 2008 issued a joint ministerial decree banning the sect from practicing its religion openly and spreading its beliefs.

Muhammad Noval, a member of the Islamic Anti-Apostasy Peace Alliance, or Ada Api, said they now had an appropriate word to describe President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

“SBY is an Ahmadi. If you see what he has done in regard to protecting the Ahmadiyah, what other word would be better to describe him than Ahmadi?” he said. “If he [Yudhoyono] does not like to be referred to as an Ahmadi, then he should issue a decree banning them!”

Separately, Julia Satari, a leader from the youth organization Pemuda Pancasila, said she wanted to offer her condolences to Yudhoyono, because in her assessment he was too lazy to resolve the issue of the Ahmadiyah.

“Ahmadis absolutely disturb the comfortable existence of Islamic worshipping. They [Ahmadiyah] are illegal according to the Constitution.”

Among the demonstrators was 7-year-old Rizdian Rangga, carrying an FPI flag. Rizdian told the Jakarta Globe he had skipped school for the massive rally. When asked why, Rizdian said: “To follow my father, and to disband the Ahmadiyah.”

FPI leader Habib Rizieq, who led the rally, condemned local media as being a tool of international Zionist groups.

Along with at least 10 other representatives from the demonstrators, Rizieq was eventually received at the Presidential Palace to discuss the demands of the protesters.

Muhammad Al-Khaththath, secretary general of the FUI, said that in the meeting with a delegation from the palace, which he said included ministers, he had told the government the “real story” about the Ahmadis.

“I saw them slightly shocked when they heard the truth about the Ahmadiyah. The Ahmadis are fakers of religion and troublemakers, I told them. It opened their eyes and hearts,” Al-Khaththath said, adding that he was certain that a presidential decree would soon be issued in regard to the Ahmadis.

Rizieq, however, said: “Our president is, after all, a politician. We should know that a politician’s promise is rarely proven.”

The governor of East Java, Soekarwo, recently issued a decree banning the sect from spreading its beliefs through any media and forbidding the display of its name in public, including signposts on mosques.

Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi said he believed Soekarwo’s decree had been issued in total support of the 2008 joint ministerial decree.

“The regulation issued by the East Java administration should do an even better job in enforcing the SKB [the 2008 joint ministerial decree]. The governor [Soekarwo] obviously believes that a gubernatorial regulation needs to be issued for better supervision [of enforcement of the decree].”

Gamawan said that organizations demanding the disbandment of the Ahmadiyah were backed by proof that the Ahmadis had indeed violated the primary points of the decree — spreading their beliefs.

He said they had done so by putting up signs and placards citing the name Ahmadiyah in public, on top of mosques, prayer halls, educational institutions and other structures.

The minister also accused Ahmadis of wearing attributes of their organization, the Jamaah Ahmadiyah Indonesia, on their body.

The East Java governor on Tuesday said he would not have any problems with JAI board members or followers launching a legal case against his anti-Ahmadiyah decree.

“It is better that they take legal action, rather then start demonstrating, or even trigger anarchic actions,” Soekarwo said.

“We are a country that follows the law.”

Additional reporting by Antara.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/ministers...ahmadiyah/426055

Government Supports Ahmadiyah Ban in East Java

NEWS

Government Supports Ahmadiyah Ban in East Java

Camelia Pasandaran | March 01, 2011

East Java Governor Soekarwo, right, issued a decree on Monday to ban Ahmadiyah in the province. The central government showed its support for the decree on Tuesday. (AFP Photo)

The central government on Tuesday supported moves by the East Java governor to ban Ahmadiyah in the province.

“It is regional head’s authority and [Ahmadiyah] has long been banned everywhere,” said Justice and Human Rights Minister Patrialis Akbar said at the presidential palace before the cabinet meeting.

Patrialis emphasized the joint ministerial decree that strongly warns Ahmadiyah followers against spreading their beliefs.

“So if they did spread it, the local government may take action,” he said.

Ahmadiyah, an Islamic sect, has long been the at the center of a dispute between human rights activists that support its existence and Islamic hard-liners that want it disbanded.

East Java Governor Soekarwo recently released a decree to totally ban the sect in East Java. Under the decree, Ahmadiyah followers are banned from spreading their beliefs through any forms of media and are forbidden to display the sects name in public and mosques.

The move has gained supported by the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), which stated that the ban was necessary to stem demonstrations against the sect.

The minister said that by spreading their beliefs, Ahmadis had triggered conflict in many places throughout the country.

“Religious freedom should not be translated into desecration of religion,” Patrialis said. “Freedom to believe in a certain religion should not be banned. However, people should not believe in a religion and carry out its beliefs in different way to that religion. Ahmadiyah has tainted religion.”

Home Affairs Minister Gawaman Fauzi said that banning Ahmadiyah was allowed as long as it did not contradict a higher regulation.

“We will evaluate it,” Gamawan said.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/government...java/425918

Best to Disband Ahmadiyah, Religious Minister Says

NEWS

Best to Disband Ahmadiyah, Religious Minister Says

Fitri | February 28, 2011

Minister Suryadharma Ali meeting with top religious leaders in Lombok, Mataram, on Sunday. At the meeting, the minister said he was in favor of banning Ahmadiyah but that religious leaders, not the government, had the power to make such a decision happen. (JG Photo/Fitri)

Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara. Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali told a gathering of Islamic leaders on Sunday that the Ahmadiyah sect should be outlawed, but that the government did not have the power to make the decision.

To shouts of “Disband Ahmadiyah” from an audience that included the heads of about 500 Islamic boarding schools and the leaders of at least nine Islamic organizations, the minister seemed to urge religious leaders to take the lead in pushing for the minority Islamic sect to be disbanded.

“We [the government] do not have the right to disband Ahmadiyah,” he said. “That right lies in the hands of you esteemed ulema. We, the government, only have the right to regulate and control, not to disband or excommunicate.”

Suryadharma told the audience in Mataram, Lombok, which included leaders from the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Muhammadiyah and Hizbut Tahrir, that MUI branches across the country had declared Ahmadiyah a deviant sect.

On those grounds, he said, any request by religious leaders to have the sect disbanded was reasonable and had his approval.

The minister’s statement came on the same day that Habib Rizieq, leader of the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), called on Muslims nationwide to attend a march on Tuesday demanding the banning of Ahmadiyah.

In a sermon in Jakarta, Rizieq invited Muslims from across Indonesia to attend a rally at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Jakarta to protest the sect.

Suryadharma said the government had not issued an official statement in regard to banning Ahmadiyah, but that he would favor any proposal to outlaw the sect.

“I admit that the government has not issued any such statement,” he said. “However, I personally am of the opinion that it would be best if Ahmadiyah was disbanded. In this case, there lies a question: If we let them be, will the problem eventually be resolved? And if we disband them, will the problem go away?

“If we leave them the way the are, the problem will only become much bigger. Ahmadiyah deserves to be disbanded.

“Once they are disbanded, harmony will be guaranteed. I have pushed members of Ahmadiyah to form a new sect that is devoid of any and all attributes of Islam, not to ever use the word or symbol of the mosque in any of their prayer halls, and never to accept the Koran as their holy book if they call themselves Ahmadiyah. My preference would be that they all leave Ahmadiyah and follow the right path by entering into Islam.”

He also urged religious leaders in the audience to work harder to bring what he called the “correct” teachings of Islam to isolated corners of the country, to prevent deviant sects from flourishing in those areas. He then posed a question for those supporting the rights of Ahmadis.

“ The problem now is that those who oppose Ahmadiyah are fighting against those campaigning for religious freedom,” he said. “If we work toward disbanding [Ahmadiyah], those fighting for religious freedom will accuse the government of getting in the way of religious freedom.

“So my question is, does religious freedom mean the freedom to insult someone else’s religion and rewrite the teachings of someone’s religion?”

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/regional...ahmadiyah/425228

Regional Indonesian Politicians to Ban Or Curb Ahmadiyah

NEWS

Regional Indonesian Politicians to Ban Or Curb Ahmadiyah

Fitri, Eras Poke, Heru Andriyanto & Antara | February 26, 2011

A man sells books titled “Mengapa Saya Keluar dari Ahmadiyah” (“Why I Left Ahmadiyah”) during a recent FPI rally in Jakarta. (Beritasatu Photo/Ulin Yusron)

Regional chiefs in some Indonesian provinces are moving ahead with plans to either ban completely or restrict the activities of Ahmadiyah followers in their areas, claiming the Muslim sect has stirred up community conflicts.

The mayor of Samarinda, Sjahrie Jaang, said he would curb all Ahmadiyah activities in the East Kalimantan capital and would also soon move to close down its mosques.

“The regulation on halting the activities of the Ahmadiyah was signed today,” he told reporters after a meeting with local police, religious leaders and community representatives on Friday.

He said he would meet with Ahmadiyah leaders in the area to enforce the regulation, advising them to halt their activities and close their houses of worship.

“This decision was taken as a form of firm action by the city administration on the Ahmadiyah issue in order to maintain security by preventing potential sources of conflict in society,” the mayor said.

When asked about the size of the Ahmadiyah community in Samarinda, Sjahrie said it was “insignificant” but if no firm action was taken immediately, it was likely to grow. “This is why we need to stop their activities now,” he said.

Representatives of the Indonesian Council of Ulema in Samarinda lauded the administration’s plans.

“The mayor’s decision is a relief to us all,” said Zaini Naim, the local chapter’s chairman. “This will stop the people from taking the law into their own hands.”

According to M. Faozal, a spokesman for West Nusa Tenggara’s provincial government, the governor was about to issue a bylaw that would outlaw the spread of Ahmadiyah teachings. “Ahmadiyah often triggers conflict in many regions, including West Nusa Tenggara,” the spokesman said on Friday. “The governor wants to prevent conflict; We’re calling on the Ahmadiyah to stop causing conflict.”

Limiting the Ahmadiyah community’s activities was necessary as a way to prevent potential conflicts, Faozal said, adding that the government hoped its followers would return to the “rightful path of Islam.”

Some Muslim leaders in West Nusa Tenggara said they welcomed the plan and hoped the governor would issue the regulation as soon as possible to prevent more clashes.

“They [Ahmadis] persist that there is no difference between Ahmadiyah and Islam, while there is a significant difference,” Saiful Muslim, head of the provincial branch of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said. “No dialogue held with them has produced any solution to the problem.”

Some Muslim groups have accused Ahmadiyah of heresy, saying that they profess their founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, to be the final prophet — a tenet that runs against Islamic beliefs that reserve that claim for the Prophet Muhammad.

Ahmadiyah community leaders, however, say that it has never claimed Mirza Ghulam Ahmad as a prophet but rather as the promised messiah, a concept that is accepted in mainstream Islam.

Saiful also claimed that Ahmadiyah followers refused to integrate with surrounding communities, which caused anxiety among their neighbors.

According to Saiful, the MUI also disagreed with a plan to forcibly relocate a group of Ahmadis to a remote area in Lombok’s southwest, saying that such a policy would only cause more conflict.

“I fear that once they are moved to Sekotong they will be attacked by the people there,” he said. “It is better for them to integrate with their neighbors and assimilate to accepted norms.”

East Nusa Tenggara’s governor, Frans Lebu Raya, meanwhile, said residents should ignore calls to take part in a rally in Kupang over the weekend to express solidarity with the besieged Ahmadiyah community in other parts of the country. The governor said the call was a hoax instigated by agitators.

In Jakarta, Edwin Pamimpin Situmorang, deputy attorney general for intelligence, said that his office was still examining a 2008 government regulation that put restrictions on the Ahmadiyah community. “We are still examining the joint decree on Ahmadiyah to assess its effectiveness, and how the recent incidents could have happen,” he said.

“In my opinion, it hasn’t been effective yet because most people do not fully understand its contents. For instance, there is a view that the decree bans Ahmadiyah, while in fact it doesn’t.”

The decree was issued in June 2008 by the Attorney General’s Office and ministries of religious and home affairs. While it does not expressly ban the existence of Ahmadiyah, it does stop Ahmadiyah followers from spreading information contrary to mainstream Muslim interpretation.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/regional...ahmadiyah/425228

Bashir Says Ahmadiyah Worse than the PKI

NEWS

Bashir Says Ahmadiyah Worse than the PKI

Heru Andriyanto | February 24, 2011

Firebrand cleric Abu Bakar Bashir talks to journalists inside a temporary cell at the South Jakarta District Court before his trial reconvened on Feb 24

Firebrand cleric Abu Bakar Bashir on Thursday attacked Ahmadiyah as being “poisonous” to Islam.

Speaking to reporters at the South Jakarta District Court on Thursday, Bashir said the government must disband the Muslim sect or face being disbanded itself.

He also described the Ahmadiyah sect as being crueler than the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI).

“Ahmadiyah must be disbanded, or the government must step down. Ahmadiyah is a poison against Islam. It is crueler than the PKI.”

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/bashir...the-pki/424764

MUI Official Blames Government for Bogor Attack

HOME

MUI Official Blames Government for Bogor Attack

Vento Saudale | February 24, 2011

A religious figure told a court on Wednesday that the government’s failure to outlaw Ahmadiyah was to blame for a 2010 attack on the Islamic sect in Bogor’s Cisalada village.

Khaerul Yunus, a member of the advisory board of the Bogor branch of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), told Cibinong District Court that the existence of Ahmadiyah was in violation of a 1965 law on religious blasphemy.

That law, he said, makes it illegal to “publicize, recommend or organize public support” for non-orthodox versions of the six religions recognized by the state.

“From that, your honor, it is clear that Ahmadiyah has violated the law,” Khaerul said, to cheers from members of conservative Muslim groups who packed the courtroom.

Ahmadiyah preaches that there was another prophet after Muhammad, while mainstream Muslims believe that Muhammad was the last prophet, Khaerul added.

He told the panel of judges that the attack on the Ahmadiyah community was the result of the government’s lax attitude toward sects in the country.

“The government does not take strict measures [against sects]. There is an MUI edict from 2005 banning Ahmadiyah and the joint decree from three ministers in 2008 that bans Ahmadiyah from spreading its faith,” he said.

“The government merely issued the regulation but has failed to check whether it is being followed.”

The attack in October 2010 saw a mob burn down houses, schools and a mosque in Cisalada, which is home to about 600 Ahmadiyah members.

Also taking the witness stand on Wednesday was Rendy Apriayansah, a Cisalada resident who was allegedly stabbed by an Ahmadiyah member during the mob attack.

He told the court that he and 10 of his friends went to the Ahmadiyah housing complex to “have a discussion” with the leaders of the group after noticing that there was a television set inside the sect’s mosque.

“There should not be a television set inside a mosque,” he said.

“But after we had spent about 15 minutes inside the mosque, the electricity suddenly went off and we ran outside. I was stabbed by an Ahmadiyah member when I tried to escape through the front door.”

When questioned by the presiding judge, Astriwati, about how he knew he had been stabbed by an Ahmadiyah member, Rendy went back and forth before being reminded by the judge that he was under oath.

“I think I was stabbed by an Ahmadiyah member,” he replied.

Bogor Police deployed 150 officers to secure the hearing, which was adjourned until March 9. Vento Saudale

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/mui...bogor-attack/424671

Ahmadi in Court Over Stabbing as Banten District Bans Sect Entirely

NEWS

Ahmadi in Court Over Stabbing as Banten District Bans Sect Entirely

Vento Saudale & Ulma Haryanto | February 24, 2011

Ahmad Nuryamin, an Ahmadi accused of wounding a 15-year-old boy, told the Cibinong District Court on Thursday that he had panicked and “accidentally” stabbed one of about 200 men who attacked and looted his village last year.

“I saw Rendy [the victim] coming from the opposite direction carrying a samurai sword. I pulled my knife and accidentally stabbed him,” Ahmad told the panel of judges.

Ahmad, a 35-year-old farmer and trader, said he had just returned home from fishing and had the knife on him when he heard a commotion outside.

Earlier, Ahmad had claimed his knife had been in its sheath during the entire attack.

Rendy was believed to have been part of a mob of some 200 people who on Oct. 1 burned and looted homes, schools and a mosque in Cisalada village in Bogor, West Java, home to about 600 followers of the Ahmadiyah.

Two witnesses gave accounts of the attack to the court, but neither saw the stabbing. “I remember people brandishing machetes, samurai swords and bamboo spears,” one witness told the judges.

The court adjourned the case until March 3.

Meanwhile, in the neighboring province of Banten, the Ahmadiyah is being curtailed even beyond the 2008 joint ministerial decree that bans the sect from practicing its religion openly and proselytizing, media reports indicate.

Lebak district would soon issue a bylaw banning the sect entirely, and the administration of Pandeglang district already issued such a decree on Monday, Antara news agency reported.

“The [deadly] clash in Cikeusik [on Feb. 6] is strong evidence that people reject the existence of the Ahmadiyah. Therefore there will be a bylaw banning it soon,” Lebak District Chief Mulyadi Jayabaya was quoted as saying by the Coordinating Ministry for People’s Welfare on Thursday.

On Feb. 6 a mob of about 1,500 people attacked about 20 Ahmadiyah members in Cikeusik village, which also falls under Banten’s jurisdiction, resulting in the death of three Ahmadiyah members.

Coordinating Minister for People’s Welfare Agung Laksono said in a statement that he appreciated all plans by local administrations to issue bylaws that are created “to better people’s lives.”

“It is the right of every district and provincial administration, together with councilors, to draft and issue bylaws,” he added.

However, Indonesian commissioner to the Asean Intergovernmental Commission on Human Rights, Rafendi Djamin, said such statements harmed Indonesia’s international image as a democracy.

“Within Asean, Indonesia was perceived as one of the states with a strong democracy, with freedom of the press and speech, and a critical civil society. But this image will fade if our law enforcement cannot prevent intolerant acts happening everywhere,” he told the Jakarta Globe.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/ahmadi-in...sect-entirely/424927

Ahmadiyah’s Critics Are the Ones Who Should Declare a New Faith

OPINION

Ahmadiyah’s Critics Are the Ones Who Should Declare a New Faith

Bramantyo Prijosusilo | February 22, 2011

As Islamist right-wingers are dominating Indonesian public opinion in regard to the Ahmadiyah sect, it would be wise to reflect on the fact that when performing their obligatory prayers, all Muslims must recite Al Fatiha, the opening chapter of Islam’s holy book, known as “the mother of the Koran,” and that the sixth verse of that chapter translates as “show us the straight path.”

Even the Prophet Muhammad recited this verse every time he performed sholat . Taken at face value this can mean one of two things: Either the prophet was acting like a fool before God and pretended not to know “the straight path,” or he was sincere in his prayer and genuinely needed God’s guidance and grace to keep on the straight and narrow path. Therefore, if any Muslim claims to be following this path and knows how to herd others along the same route, surely this person is speaking out of arrogance rather than knowledge and is far from following the footsteps of the gentle and humble Muhammad.

Whoever claims to know the straight path should not recite Al Fatiha in his or her sholat. When you know something, should you stand before God and ask for that thing to be revealed to you? God is all-knowing, and thus asking God for something that you already have would be silly and disrespectful. Therefore, all thinking Muslims (and the Koran repeatedly urges us to think) should refrain from claiming clear and certain knowledge of the straight path, for to do so is tantamount to claiming superiority to the spiritual knowledge of our beloved prophet, who is our spiritual beacon. Can one claim to be Muslim while believing oneself to have greater knowledge about spiritual matters than Muhammad?

Recently people claiming to have superior knowledge of Islam and to represent Muslims have been calling for the Ahmadiyah sect to be banned in Indonesia if its members continue to call themselves Muslim and to use Islamic symbols. The only acceptable option for the Ahmadiyah sect to continue to exist in Indonesia, they say, is for them to declare that they are followers of a new, different and separate religion.

Many lay Muslims seem to agree with this solution, but what its advocates tend to forget is that to become a Muslim, one need only to declare that there is no god but God and Muhammad is his prophet. This simple declaration of faith has been enough to make someone a Muslim since the time Muhammad begun preaching Islam in 7th century Arabia. All Ahmadiyah followers say this declaration of faith each time they perform sholat.

While some people who call themselves learned in matters of Islam declare that the Ahmadiyah sect has left Islam, let us recall a hadith (tradition) that tells us how Muhammad was seriously upset when, in battle, one of his disciples put to the sword an enemy who recited the declaration of Islamic faith. The tradition tells us that the disciple defended his actions by claiming that his victim had only declared his faith because he was afraid of death, but the prophet rebutted him, declaring that only God knows the truth in man’s heart.

Are not these religious experts who would judge others telling us that they know more about Islam than the Prophet Muhammad? Ahamdiyah followers not only profess the declaration of faith that makes them Muslims, they also perform the prescribed prayers, pay the zakat alms for the poor, fast during Ramadan and, if they are able, make the pilgrimage to Mecca to follow the rituals of the hajj at least once in their lifetime.

Just like mainstream Muslims, Ahmadiyah followers also believe in the six pillars of faith: in God, in his angels, in his books, in his prophets, in fate and in the Day of Judgment. The small difference between the Ahmadiyah faith and the belief of the mainstream is that Ahmadis believe that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad was a prophet — the Messiah, Jesus in his second coming. That there will be a Messiah near the end of time is a belief also held by mainstream Muslims, only most Muslims believe that the Messiah has not yet revealed himself.

Still, believing that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is the promised Messiah should not exclude one from the Islamic community, for to be a Muslim, since the times of the Prophet Muhammad, one is obliged only to declare that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is his prophet. Perhaps the scholars of this new type of Islam — one that preaches hatred and violence — have added to the declaration of faith, and now to be a Muslim one also should declare that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is definitely not the promised Messiah.

If only these knowledgeable scholars would be honest and state their new declaration of faith, things would be much simpler, because in doing so they would also openly declare a new religion, somewhat different to the message of peace and love brought to mankind by Muhammad 1,400 years ago.

One important Islamic doctrine is that there is no priesthood. Muhammad had many disciples of all backgrounds — powerful and humble, male and female, young and old, black and white, free man and slave — but they were taught that in the eyes of God all people are equal and only their faith and deeds can differentiate them in front of God. Scholars of Islam have constricted the word ulema to mean only scholars of religious disciplines, thus excluding all other branches of knowledge that, in their search for truth, are also fundamentally Islamic.

They have elevated their status to become “priests” within Islam, with the authority to declare what is righteous and what is forbidden in the eyes of God. Instead of forcing Ahmadiyah people out of Islam with violence, intimidation and murder, it is these people who should declare a new non-peaceful, priest-led, non-Islamic religion.

Bramantyo Prijosusilo is a writer, artist and broadcast journalist in East Java.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/opinion/ahmadiyahs...faith/423998

Ahmadis Receive Promise of Protection From Central Sulawesi Police

NEWS

Ahmadis Receive Promise of Protection From Central Sulawesi Police

February 21, 2011

Palu. Central Sulawesi Police on Monday pledged to monitor the conditions of Ahmadiyah followers in the province and protect them from violence.

“We’re keeping a close eye on the Ahmadis and we are asking the people [of Central Sulawesi] not to resort to anarchy,” Central Sulawesi Police Chief Brig. Gen. Dewa Parsana said after a meeting with the local Ahmadiyah officials, representatives of Islamic organizations and government officials in Palu.

Dewa promised to protect Ahmadi followers from the threats of violence.

“All citizens have the right to be protected,” he said.

There are around 100 Ahmadi followers in Central Sulawesi, according to Ahmad Nadjamuddin, a representative of Palu’s Ahmadiyah community.

“We can only pray for the safety of our brothers,” Nadjamuddin said.

Over in Cianjur, West Java, however, the local chapter of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) reiterated that the only way for attacks against the minority sect’s followers to stop was for them to leave Islam and declare a new religion.

“Ahmadiyah is deviant and deviating,” said the head of Cianjur’s MUI office, Abdul Halim. “If they keep insisting to be a part of Islam, conflicts will keep on happening. Why aren’t they brave enough to stand up for what they believe in and declare themselves a religion outside of Islam?” he said.

MUI has a 2005 fatwa labeling Ahmadiyah a deviant Muslim sect and its followers as apostates.

On Sunday, MUI defended itself against critics who say the fatwa has contributed to the violence against the minority sect.

“There’s not one religion in this world that teaches violence,” Amidhan, chairman of the MUI, said on Sunday.

Antara, JG

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/mui...its-fatwa/423827

MUI Denies Ahmadiyah Attacks a Result of Its Fatwa

NEWS

MUI Denies Ahmadiyah Attacks a Result of Its Fatwa

Dessy Sagita & Camelia Pasandaran | February 21, 2011

Police officers inspecting the damaged house of an Ahmadi after it was attacked by a Muslim mob in Pandeglang, Banten, earlier this month. (AP Photo)

Two weeks after a deadly attack on Ahmadiyah followers in Banten, the Indonesian Council of Ulema has called on the government to investigate cases of religious violence.

The group, known as the MUI, also defended itself against critics who say its edict denouncing Ahmadiyah has contributed to the violence against the minority sect.

“There’s not one religion in this world that teaches violence,” Amidhan, chairman of the MUI, said on Sunday.

He said many people had misunderstood the council’s 2005 fatwa labeling Ahmadiyah a deviant Muslim sect and its followers as apostates.

“Indeed, point No. 1 of that edict calls for a ban on Ahmadiyah,” he said, “but point No. 3 clearly states that any violence against Ahmadiyah followers is strictly prohibited.”

He said the misinterpretation had damaged the MUI’s reputation, making it a target for critics who claim the organization has incited hatred and encouraged attacks on the sect.

“No belief, whether it is heretical or not, deserves to be treated violently, and we are fully aware of that fact,” he said. “Therefore, I don’t understand why the MUI is linked to these violent acts.”

On Friday, hard-line Muslim groups rallied in Jakarta to demand the government disband Ahmadiyah. The chairman of the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), Habib Riziq, said that “Ahmadiyah must not exist in Indonesia” and should be dismantled at all costs.

He warned of a revolution if the president failed to disband the sect, going as far as to call for the government to be toppled.

Amidhan dismissed such threats and said the Feb. 6 attack in Banten, which left three Ahmadis dead, and the government’s response, had led some groups to believe they were above the law. He urged the government to punish those responsible.

“The government and the police need to act fast to find the real culprits and provocateurs behind the incident . They must investigate both the attackers and the Ahmadiyah members who were at the scene,” he said, adding that the only way to properly resolve the issue was through the courts.

Meanwhile, in response to an outpouring of criticism over its slow response to a spate of attacks on minority groups, the government plans to revise the Law on Mass Organizations to make it easier to disband groups that advocate violence.

Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi said the revision would be part of this year’s national legislative program.

“The new law is expected to be more strict and shorten the time it takes to disband an organization,” he told the Jakarta Globe in Mamuju, West Sulawesi, on Saturday.

The law currently requires a lengthy process of collecting evidence of illegal behavior, followed by a freezing of the organization, before it can be disbanded.

Gamawan said the law made it difficult to disband organizations, even ones like the FPI that have openly called for revolution.

“We need evidence, because if we did it without evidence, the government would be accused of breaking the law,” he said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Feb. 9, three days after the Banten attack, called for organizations that advocate violence to be shut down.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/mui...its-fatwa/423827

Government to Simplify Disbanding Mass Organizations

NEWS

Government to Simplify Disbanding Mass Organizations

Camelia Pasandaran | February 19, 2011

Little boy sells “Suara Islam” (“Islamic Voice”) tabloid during the FPI rally at Hotel Indonesia traffic circle on Friday. (Beritasatu Photo/Ulin Yusron)

Mamuju, West Sulawesi. In response to concerns over attacks on minority religious groups, the government is drafting a law that will make it easier to disband violent mass organizations, according to Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi.

“We’re revising the law, and this year it will be part of the national legislation program,” Gamawan told the Jakarta Globe on Saturday. “The new law is expected to be more strict and to shorten the time it takes to disband an organization.”

Under the current Mass Organization Law, there is a lengthy process required of collecting evidence of illegal behavior, followed by freezing the organization before disbanding it.

In increasingly harsh language, groups like the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) have issued ultimatums to the government demanding the disbanding of the minority Ahmadiyah sect and a halt to the building of Christian churches in many areas. Critics have said the FPI and others incite their followers to violence.

On Friday, FPI chairman Habib Riziq sadi in his weekly sermon that “Ahmadiyah must not exist in Indonesia.” He warned that unless the president forces Ahmadiyah out of existence there would be “revolution.”

Gamawan said that under the current law the government cannot not easily disband an organization, including ones like the FPI that plan to oust the president.

“It needs evidence, because if we did it without evidence, the government would be blamed for violating the law,” Gamawan said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recently called for the disbanding of violent organization following the deadly Feb. 6 attack on Ahmadiyah in West Java and a mob attack two days later in Central Java that burned churches.

Gamawan said the new law would give the government more authority to disband violent organizations quickly.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/government.../423637

Blasphemy Law Review Demanded Amid Strife

HOME

Blasphemy Law Review Demanded Amid Strife

Ulma Haryanto | February 19, 2011

The Constitutional Court should now consider the consequences of upholding the 1965 Blasphemy Law, a top human rights watchdog has said, arguing that it should go, based on the recent evidence of the law’s complete failure to protect social harmony.

The Human Rights Working Group pointed out that recent nationwide displays of religious intolerance in the form of attacks and demonstrations since the start of the year alone were enough to once again review whether or not the Blasphemy Law was actually serving its purpose of keeping peace among Indonesians.

Last year, the Constitutional Court rejected a motion to revise or annul the 1965 law, saying the request had “no legal basis.”

The ruling was made by the nine-member panel of judges with one dissenting opinion.

The demand for a judicial review was filed by several human rights organizations, who had argued that the state should not restrict people’s right to freedom of worship.

Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali had publicly opposed the petitioners at the time, and warned that the law was needed to “maintain social harmony and prevent an explosion of new religions.”

The law was used in 2008 to force followers of the Islamic Ahmadiyah sect to go underground and has regularly been cited by minority groups as a justification for discrimination and intimidation.

“We want to appeal to the consciences of the Constitutional Court judges, who at one time said in their ruling that the law was necessary to keep the peace,” HRWG deputy chairperson Choirul Anam told the Jakarta Globe. “Look what’s happened. Attacks on religious minorities have instead increased, and continue to rise.”

Under the Constitution, six religions are officially recognized and protected by the state — Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism, Protestantism and Confucianism. The 1965 Blasphemy Law makes it illegal to “publicize, recommend or organize public support” for unorthodox versions of those six religions or other faiths.

Almost a year after the court’s ruling, representatives from a number of human rights organizations on Friday invited the public to discuss the impact of the ruling and the future of Indonesia’s struggle to express religious freedom.

Speaking alongside Choirul were Islamic scholar Azyumardi Azra, Rumadi from the Wahid Institute, Mansyur Zaini from the Coordinating Board for Monitoring Mystical Beliefs in Society (Bakor Pakem) and Zainal Abidin of the Institute for Policy Research and Advocacy (Elsam).

“It’s difficult to have unbiased public officers serving the public for the nation’s interests, and not their own religious beliefs, Choirul said.

“Even the Constitutional Court judges could not remain impartial during the hearing. Some judges referred to Koranic verses and hadiths [words and deeds of the Prophet Muhammad] at the time, which should not have been allowed since it was a discourse in the Constitutional Court, not [a recital of] religious scriptures,” Choirul said.

There have been a number of attacks against religious minorities in recent weeks. Most notably the killing of three Ahmadiyah followers in Banten, West Java, and attacks on churches in the Temanggung area of Central Java.

Azyumardi pointed to a recent dialog held between leaders of the Ahmadiyah community with House of Representatives VIII, which oversees religious affairs.

“I could see that a lot of political party members who claim to be secular turned out to be religiously biased,” Azyumardi said, adding that through those sessions alone he could see that not just major bodies like the Religious Affairs Ministry and the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) had been infiltrated by hard-liners but also political parties.

Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation director Nurkholis Hidayat told of when he was attacked in March by the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), following one of the Constitutional Court hearings.

“We were chased off. They asked us what our religion was. Even though I am a Muslim, they kept on shouting that we were infidels,” he said.

The gloomy outlook however, would not stop the organizations from advocating religious freedom at various levels, Choirul said.

“The next step will be to push the government and the legislative to draft a law on religious freedom, not religious harmony as has been discussed until now,” he said.

Copyright 2010 The Jakarta Globe
URL: www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/blasphemy...strife/423571