HTML pages designed & maintained by Alifuru67 Copyright © 1999/2000 - 1364283024 & 1367286044		2000 Annual Report on International Religious Freedom: Indonesia Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor U.S. Department of State, September 5, 2000 INDONESIA (section 1) (section 2) The Constitution provides for religious freedom for members of five of the six officially recognized religions and belief in one supreme God, and the Government generally respects these provisions; however, there are some restrictions on certain types of religious activity, including unrecognized religions. The law officially "embraces" six religions--Islam, Catholicism, Protestantism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism. The Government generally respects the freedom to worship of adherents to each of these religions. Presidential Decree No. 6, promulgated in January 2000, lifted severe legal restrictions on the practice of Confucianism that had existed since 1967. While only these six religions are recognized officially, the law states that other religions are not forbidden. A few groups are banned explicitly, including Jehovah's Witnesses, whose adherents may experience difficulty processing civil matters like marriage. Likewise, citizens who are members of religions other than the six officially recognized may be obliged to identify themselves as Catholics, Muslims, etc., in order to obtain national identity cards or process other civil matters. The Government's level of respect for religious freedom remained generally constant during the period covered by this report; however, religious intolerance within society became markedly more visible and was manifested in scores of violent incidents in Maluku, Sulawesi, Lombok, and elsewhere. There were numerous attacks on churches in various locations throughout the country, ranging from minor damage to total destruction; only a few cases, if any, were investigated thoroughly, and there were no reports that any perpetrators were punished. Mosques also were targeted for attack in some instances, especially during the ongoing interreligious strife in North Maluku and Maluku provinces (also known as the Molucca Islands), and around Poso, Central Sulawesi. Religious intolerance led to violence in several regions, particularly in the Moluccas and Central Sulawesi. It generally is estimated that approximately 4,000 persons have been killed in the Moluccus strife since violence erupted in January 1999. The victims were roughly equally divided between Christians and Muslims. In addition to intercommunal violence in Maluku and North Maluku provinces, significant religious conflict also occurred on the islands of Sulawesi and Lombok. Churches and other Christian facilities continued to be targeted for attack in Java, where Muslims are a majority, although not to the extent to which they were targeted in 1996-97. The U.S. discusses religious freedom issues with the Government in the context of its overall dialog and policy of promoting human rights. Section I. Government Policies on Freedom of Religion Legal/Policy Framework The Constitution provides for religious freedom for members of five of the six officially recognized religions and belief in one supreme God, and the Government generally respects these provisions; however, there are some restrictions on certain types of religious activity, including unrecognized religions. Law No. 1/1965 states that the Government "embraces" Islam, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism. Law No. 14/1967 on Chinese Worship, Religion and Customs restricted severely the practice of Confucianism by, for example, confining Chinese worship, religion and customs to the home and temple; however, in January 2000, Presidential Decree No. 6/2000 revoked the 1967 restrictive legislation. While the law formally "embraces" only these six religions, it explicitly states that other religions, including Judaism, Zoroastarianism, Shintoism, and Taoism are not forbidden. The Government permits the practice of other religions, including Sikhism and the mystical, traditional beliefs called "Aliran Kepercayaan." The Government bans other faiths, such as Jehovah's Witnesses and some Islamic groups. The People's Consultative Assembly adopted a new Human Rights Charter in November 1998 which provides citizens the freedom to practice their religion, without specifying any particular religions. The legal requirement to adhere to the official state ideology, "Pancasila," extends to all religious and secular organizations. Because the first tenet of Pancasila is belief in one supreme God, atheism is forbidden. Although individuals are not compelled to practice any particular faith, all citizens must classify themselves as members of one of the six officially recognized religions. As this choice must be noted on official documents, such as the identification card, failure to identify a religion can make it impossible to obtain such documents. Members of other religious communities must be identified with one of the six sanctioned religions. For example, Sikhs generally are classified as Hindus. Prior to the passage of Presidential Decree No. 6/2000, Confucians were required to identify themselves as one of the other officially recognized religions; however, according to domestic news reports, as of May 2000, approximately 100 persons had succeeded in obtaining recognition as adherents of Confucianism on their identification cards.   The Government continues to oppose strongly any Muslim group that advocates the establishment of an Islamic state or the supplanting of civil law with Shari'a (Islamic law). However, at times it was reluctant to challenge extreme Muslim groups openly (see Section II). Religious Demography The population, estimated at 211,000,000 persons, is approximately 85 percent Muslim, 10 percent Christian, 2 percent Hindu, and 1 to 1.5 percent Buddhist, with the remainder members of other religions. Animism still is practiced in remote regions of Kalimantan and Papua (also known as Irian Jaya). Muslims are the majority population in most regions of Sumatra and Java. Muslims also predominate in regions of Sulawesi and Kalimantan and are present as minorities in most other parts of the country. The vast majority of Muslims are Sunni, although there also are Shi'a and adherents of Sufism, Ahmadiyah, and other branches of Islam. The Muslim community primarily breaks down into two groups: "modernist," mainly urban communities, which adhere more closely to orthodox Sunni theology, and larger "traditionalist" communities, composed mainly of rural Javanese Muslims, who incorporate some elements of Javanese mysticism, Hinduism, and Buddhism into their practice of Islam. Most Christians reside in the eastern part of the country. Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion in the provinces of Nusa Tenggara Timor and southeast Maluku, while Protestantism is the predominant religion in central and north Maluku. In the easternmost province of Papua, Protestants are predominant in the north, and Catholics are the majority in the south. Other significant Christian populations are located in North Sumatra, seat of the influential Batak Protestant Church, which in early 1999 reunited after a government-manipulated division in 1993. There also are significant Christian populations in west and central Java, and in Kalimantan. Many urban Sino-Indonesians adhere to Christian faiths as well. Migration, both government-sponsored and spontaneous, gradually is increasing the Muslim population in the eastern part of the country. Some Christian critics have alleged that the Government has attempted to alter the demographic balance of the eastern part of the country by resettling Muslims in the area and providing various subsidies for those who settle spontaneously. The critics claim that growing communal violence in eastern Indonesia is a product of this policy (see Section II). However, government programs have not sponsored most Muslims who have moved into the region. Most Hindus live in Bali, where they form about 93 percent of the population. Balinese Hinduism has developed various local characteristics that distinguish it from Hinduism as practiced on the Indian subcontinent. There also is a significant Hindu minority (the Keharingan) in central Kalimantan. Seven schools of Buddhism are practiced in the country: Buddhayana, Mahayana, Theravada, Tridharma, Kasogatan, Nichiren, and Maitreya. Most, but not all, Buddhists are of ethnic Chinese origin. Like the Sino-Indonesian population, most Buddhists are located in major urban and trading centers, rather than rural areas. The Government actively promotes mutual tolerance and harmony among officially recognized religions. Citizens practicing the recognized religions maintain active links with coreligionists inside and outside the country and travel abroad for religious gatherings. The Government both facilitates and regulates Muslims' participation in the annual Hajj pilgrimages to Mecca. For the first time since the beginning of the Soeharto regime, religiously oriented parties, predominantly Islamic but including some Christian, were allowed to form and to contest the June 1999 parliamentary elections. Christian parties received relatively few votes; Muslim parties won about 30 percent of the vote. Of the Muslim parties, those with moderate views on the role of Islam in government and society dominated. Parties that strongly advocated an Islamization of government policy won a small percentage of the vote and few parliamentary seats. Governmental Restrictions on Religious Freedom Restrictions exist on certain types of religious activity, including restrictions on officially recognized religions. For example, a number of regulations enacted subsequent to the passage of Law No. 1/1965 severely restrict some religious groups. Moreover, a 1976 decision by the Attorney General, reinforced by a separate decision by the same office in 1978, banned Jehovah's Witnesses from practicing their faith. Jehovah's Witnesses claim that significant abuse, including detention and torture, lasted until 1997. Although government hostility toward Jehovah's Witnesses has subsided, open practice of the faith remains banned, and members report that they continue to experience difficulty registering marriages, enrolling children in school, and in other civil matters. The Government in some provinces banned the messianic Islamic school, Darul Arqam; the Government also bans the Al-Ma'Unah school in some provinces. Members of the Baha'i faith did not report problems during the period covered by this report. The Government closely monitors Islamic groups considered to be deviating from orthodox tenets and in the past has dissolved such groups. Historically, the Government has tried to control "heterodox" Muslim groups, due to pressure by nongovernmental leaders of "mainstream" or "orthodox" Muslim groups as well as the Government's concern for national unity. In addition "mainstream" Christian leaders have influenced government policy against "fundamentalist" Christians. Non-Trinitarians (Jehovah's Witnesses) have faced government bans that they claim were instigated by Trinitarian Christians. After the passage of Presidential Decree No. 6/2000, Confucianists, who in the past were restricted severely, were permitted to celebrate publicly the Chinese New Year for the first time in over 30 years. A 1969 regulation dictates that before a house of worship can be built, agreement must be obtained from local residents living near the site, and a license must be obtained from the regional office of the Ministry of Religion. Some Christians claim that this regulation is used to discriminate against them and to prevent them from building churches. Despite the problems, the building of churches continued, sometimes without permits. Muslims contend that Christians, in some instances, seek to erect churches in areas with small Christian populations with the aim of creating a base in a Muslim area in order to proselytize. The law allows for conversion between faiths, and such conversions do occur. Independent observers note that it has become increasingly difficult to gain official recognition of interfaith marriages between Muslims and non-Muslims. Persons from religions outside the six accepted religions also have difficulty in getting their marriages recognized officially. The Government views proselytizing by recognized religions in areas heavily dominated by another recognized religion as potentially disruptive and discourages it. Foreign missionary activities are relatively unimpeded, although in Papua, and occasionally elsewhere, missionaries have experienced difficulties and delays in renewing residence permits. In addition visas allowing the entrance of new foreign clergy sometimes are difficult to obtain. Foreigners present in the country holding tourist visas may be deported for proselytizing. Laws and decrees from the 1970's limit the number of years that foreign missionaries can spend in the country; some extensions were granted in remote areas like Papua. Foreign missionary work is subject to the funding stipulations of the 1984 ORMAS law, which regulates the activities of all nongovernment "mass" organizations in the country. The October 1999 election of Muslim leader Abdurrahman Wahid as President was greeted with optimism by Christians and members of other religious minority groups because of his longstanding advocacy of religious tolerance and harmony. In addition to Muslims, Wahid appointed Christians, a Hindu, and a Buddhist to his Cabinet. Wahid continued actively to promote tolerance as President, and demonstrated his commitment to religious freedom by calling on leaders of Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, and others during their religious festivals. The Government's level of respect for religious freedom remained generally constant during the period covered by this report; however, religious intolerance within society became markedly more visible and was manifested in scores of violent incidents in Maluku, Sulawesi, Lombok, and elsewhere (see Section II). The most widespread interreligious violence erupted in the Moluccas, where several hundred houses of worship, both mosques and churches, were destroyed and thousands of persons were killed as Christians and Muslims waged an internecine conflict (see Section II). Governmental Abuses of Religious Freedom Religious violence and the lack of an effective government response to punish perpetrators and prevent further attacks led to allegations that officials were complicit in some of the incidents or, at a minimum, allowed them to occur with impunity. Although the President and other officials repeatedly have criticized instances of interreligious violence, the Government's efforts to end or reduce such violence generally have not been effective. The Government continued to demonstrate reluctance to intervene in mob attacks on houses of worship. Security forces proved ineffective in controlling the violence in North Maluku and Maluku provinces, where both Christians and Muslims repeatedly were targeted for attack on the basis of their religion and ethnic group. In North Maluku and Maluku provinces Christian sources alleged that elements of the security forces were biased against them. For example, predominantly Muslim units dispatched from Java and Sulawesi allegedly sided with Muslim vigilantes and used excessive force against Christians. In other instances, security forces appeared to be biased against Muslims. For example, Muslims on Ambon charged that members of the predominantly Christian police force also were partial in helping their coreligionists. There was no evidence to suggest that the security forces, as an institution, supported one side or the other. Some individuals and some units occasionally sided with their coreligionists, but their actions appeared to be random and contrary to orders. In fact some military troops were detained and interrogated for allegedly openly siding with militia in at least one episode on Haruku; however, there were no reports that such perpetrators ever were punished. Several hundred police officers have themselves been attacked, and some even killed because of their religion; hundreds of police members and their families, as well as numerous other government officials, are among the refugees. Reviving a centuries-old Ambonese practice, in March 2000, the provincial government enlisted Muslims and Christians to cooperate in the reconstruction of two major places of worship that were destroyed during rioting, Silo Church and An'nur Mosque (see Section II). In a highly publicized ceremony, the governor, the Vice President, and others, presided over the laying of cornerstones for each building. However, as of mid-2000, workers had made little progress. In response to heightened violence in the Moluccas in the first half of 2000 (see Section II), on June 23, 2000, President Wahid banned all travel to the Moluccas; on June 26, 2000, the President declared a state of civil emergency. However, during the period covered by this report, the Government was unable to suppress the violence or fully contain the flow of fighters and weapons to the Moluccas. In contrast the governors of the provinces of Sulawesi, working with military and police leaders, responded to the outbreak of communal violence in the Poso area in the first quarter of 2000 by implementing a comprehensive program to prevent the violence from spreading. This response included investigation and detention of suspects, comprehensive weapons searches, and an effort to return refugees to their home villages as soon as possible. As of mid-2000, this response seemed to have halted the cycle of retaliation. In East Timor, before and after the August 30, 1999 vote in favor of independence, pro-Indonesia militias killed numerous Catholic priests and nuns who were engaged in humanitarian activities and destroyed many Catholic places of worship, many of which were being used to shelter thousands of internally displaced persons (IDP's). In general the abuses were not motivated by religious differences but by pro-Indonesia militia groups' efforts to discourage a vote for independence and later to take revenge after their efforts failed. There were no reports of religious detainees or prisoners during the period covered by this report. In the summer of 1999, two Christians, one a pastor, one a parishioner, were sentenced to 5-to-10 year prison terms in a sensational case in Padang, West Sumatra. Salmon Ongirwale was convicted of kidnaping in connection with his relationship with a Muslim woman, then a minor. The pastor was convicted as an accomplice. Some members of the Muslim community, including the woman's parents, alleged that the two persons had plotted to kidnap their daughter and force her to convert to Christianity. Members of the Christian community alleged that the defendants had been charged and tried unfairly, and were singled out for such harsh treatment because they were Christians. Forced Religious Conversion of Minor U.S. Citizens There were no reports of the forced religious conversion of minor U.S. citizens who had been abducted or illegally removed from the United States, or of the Government's refusal to allow such citizens to be returned to the United States. ** Continue to section II...   Received via e-mail from : Tali_Hulaleng Copyright © 1999-2000  - Ambon Berdarah On-Line * http://go.to/ambon HTML pages designed and maintained by Alifuru67 * http://www.oocities.org/ambon67 Send your comments to alifuru67@egroups.com