Last month, there were at least three major conflicts involving houses of worship across Indonesia. In East Java, residents protested plans for a new church in Ponorogo, and plans for a Muhammadiyah mosque in Banyuwangi. And in West Java, the longstanding controversy over the construction of the Yasmin church in...
Indonesia has had a tumultuous year dealing with a divisive election and massive protests against Jakarta’s former governor, led by the Islamic Defenders’ Front (FPI). Things finally appeared to calm down last month, until the police charged FPI’s firebrand leader, (link is external) Rizieq Shihab,...
Implementing religion in our daily lives is challenging because different people have different values. Many religious authorities in Indonesia promote peace. However, some religious groups have used religion as justification for violence. The same can be seen with regard to women’s rights. On the one hand,...
Indonesia is witnessing a striking upsurge in vigilantism. Sana Jaffrey delves deep into the reasons why society’s coercive capacity is on the rise and what it means. The three consecutive Defence of Islam rallies in Jakarta were seen as a spectacular blow to President Joko Widodo’s...
Indonesian National Police Chief Tito Karnavian said that Rp 76 billion (AU$7.6 million) was spent on security for the 4 November and 2 December rallies. Photo by M Agung Rajasa for Antara The financial cost of the three so-called “Actions to Defend Islam” was not small. It increased...
Indonesia’s experience shows that time is of the essence for Aung San Su Kyi, if she is to capitalise on her popular mandate and move Myanmar onto a surer democratic footing, Sana Jaffrey writes. This is an awkward time for teaching about democracy. The rise of...
Indonesia must mourn once again after Buddhist temples in Tanjung Balai, North Sumatra, were burned down by a mob a few days ago. Allegedly sparked by a small dispute regarding a complaint about mosque loudspeakers, the incident lengthens the list of intolerance acts in Indonesia,...
“Reconciliation is a meeting ground where trust and mercy have met and where justice and peace have kissed.” (John Paul Lederach) Conflict is inevitable. To avoid that conflict transforms into violence, bigger problem that tear the society apart, we need to think of strategies to solve...
Images of Saeni pleading in protest as her food was confiscated by officials galvanised Indonesian netizens, who collected about $27,000 in support of Saeni and other traders whose stalls were raided by authorities. Photo by Kompas TV. Senior civil society activists in Jakarta also contributed to this post. Public Order...
While the world is busy with the rise of radical groups that spread terror, we may be ignoring what are in the hands of the terrorists, the weapons. Weapons of mass destruction are no longer nuclear arsenals — but the Avtomat Kalashnikova 47, the famous...
While the international community is calling on Indonesia to the spare lives of convicted drug traffickers from being executed, petty criminals are being lynched to death by mobs taking the law into their own hands in the country. Recently, incidents of motorcycle robberies on the streets...
The 1965 Blasphemy Law is a tough challenge to human rights. Contrary to the protection of the right to worship, it raises the risk of human-rights violations. Not only can it be used to criminalize someone, the law is also easily manipulated by various actors. The...
