TEMPO, No. 01/VI/Sept 06 - 12, 2005
The Cross In The Closet
The number of unilateral closings of churches continues to increase. Strangely, the
police have not cracked down on angry mobs.
THAT afternoon there should have been a memorable farewell gathering for the church
congregation in Kampung Sukabirus, Dayeuh Kolot, Bandung. The term of service for
Reverend Yuyun Noormalia had ended. The synod had reassigned her to Jakarta. The
preparations had already been made. The pews were aligned, and the pulpit was
readied, and a cross was hung neatly on the wall.
However, the event did not take place. As afternoon neared on Monday two weeks
ago, tens of people from the Anti-Apostasy Movement Alliance (AGAP) and the
Anti-Apostasy Front (BAP) arrived at the house, which is used as a place of worship.
Led by H Muhammad Mu’min, they entered the home to meet Yuyun. "There were
about 50 of them," said Merry Kristiani, a church official, to Tempo last week.
The group’s purpose was very clear. They asked that religious activities at the home
be stopped. The church side, which is represented by a council of 11 congregation
members, including Yuyun, endeavored to present an argument in their defense. The
situation grew tense. According to Merry, who heard the story from Yuyun, someone
from the group pounded on the table while threatening, "Do you want peace or war?"
But no violence took place. The police, who had been invited to secure the farewell
event, watched over the impromptu meeting. As a result, there were to be no more
religious activities held there that afternoon. Even the farewell gathering with Reverend
Yuyun was cancelled. "We only said a prayer together," said Merry.
The following day the closure was finalized by Agus Zakia, the district head of
Dayeuhkolot, by issuing an official decree. This was done after holding a local
Subdistrict Leaders Deliberative Meeting (muspika), which was attended by church
representatives, residents, and AGAP. The reason for the closure was that there was
no permit for the house in accordance with Regent of Bandung Decree No. 4522/1994
regarding the Conditions for Establishing Places of Worship.
This event in Dayeuh Kolot was the first of many in Bandung. Over the past two
weeks, at least three places of worship have been shut down. In addition to Dayeuh
Kolot, places of worship in the Cimahi region and the Margahayu housing complex
were closed by the muspika upon the insistence of residents.
AGAP commander H Muhammad Mu’min said that they have closed 23 places of
worship in the recent past. "There are still many others which we are going to close,"
he said. This man, who is a lecturer at the YPKP Bandung Economy Tertiary
Institute, noted that the churches which they closed were in violation of the 1969 Joint
Decree (SKB) of the Minister of Religious Affairs and Minister of Home Affairs
regarding the establishment of places of worship.
The news from Bandung spread quickly. Zeal to close unauthorized places of worship
quickly spread to various regions. In Tangerang, Banten, on Sunday of last week,
residents of Community Unit 11, North Larangan subdistrict, arrived en masse at a
building which is used as a Christian place of worship. According to Safrudin, the
head of Community Unit 11, they visited church officials at the building and asked for
them to cease conducting religious activities.
Their reason was that the building, which was originally designed as a multipurpose
facility, was being misused. "They should be using it according to its function," said
Safrudin. He disagreed that their action was injurious to religious life. "In the incident
this Sunday, we waited until their service was finished."
Still on the outskirts of Jakarta, the same thing happened with a house in the region of
Citeureup, Bogor. According to the Chairman of the Daily Managers Council of the
Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), Father Andreas A. Yewangoe, this place
of worship was closed last August. Earlier, in April, a place of worship in Garut was
also closed. Anderas mentioned this after meeting with President Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono on August 23 of this year.
The State Palace has taken action. On Monday of last week, the president
summoned Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal & Security Affairs Widodo A.S.,
Minister of Religious Affairs Maftuh Basyuni, Indonesian Military (TNI) Commander in
Chief, General Endriartono Sutarto, National Police Chief, General Sutanto, head of
the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) Sjamsir Siregar, and Cabinet Secretary Sudi
Silalahi, to a limited cabinet meeting. As a result, the president asked that the SKB
be reviewed.
* * *
It seems that the SKB, which was signed by Minister of Religious Affairs K.H. Ahmad
Dahlan and Minister of Home Affairs Amir Machmud in 1969, is seen as a source of
dispute. This decree regulates matters of religious propagation, including the
establishment of places of worship. This decree states that authorization from a
regional head is required to establish religious facilities. If it is deemed necessary, the
regional head can also ask for the input of local religious organizations, religious
scholars, and spiritual figures.
This is not a new issue. From time to time, the issue of the need for the SKB has
come and gone according to public incidents. Each time there has been a mass
attack on a place of worship, the SKB is called into question (see Red-Tape
Repercussions).
Religious minorities feel that the SKB no longer fits with the times. It is felt that this
policy obstructs minorities from establishing places of worship. According to PGI
Deputy Secretary Weinata Sairin M.Th., they often have difficulty obtaining the
permission of local residents whenever they wish to establish a church. "You won’t
believe it, but it takes us about 20 years to get permission," he said to Mawar
Kusuma from Tempo.
However, since rites to praise God cannot wait, they have had to make do with private
homes, shops, or multipurpose buildings. Sairin says that of the approximately 15
places of worship in West Java which have been closed, only five are actually built like
churches. The rest were multipurpose buildings. "After being closed, where will the
congregations worship?"
However, on the other hand, the use of buildings other than churches for worship
activities often raises suspicion: the churches are accused of trying to turn local
residents into Christians, called "Christianization". In addition to holding religious
services, church officials also frequently conduct social activities. Muhammad
Mu’min has records of thousands of Bandung residents who have been converted to
Christianity due to the influence of these places of worship. "Two thousand
households in Pangalengan and 500 households in the Cimenyan district, Bandung
regency, have turned apostate," he claimed.
Not only the minorities agree with reviewing the SKB. Din Sjamsuddin, Chairman of
the Central Board of Muhammadiyah, also concurred with the president’s measure.
He proposes taking up a legal approach and establishing broad public agreement to
prevent conflict on the issue of the establishment of places of worship. He also asked
that religious leaders continue to adhere to social norms. "Bringing a congregation
from another region into a community with a certain religious following will be
detrimental to social harmony," he said to Maria Ulfah from Tempo.
Up to this point, there have been two interpretations of the text of the SKB. One side
feels that it is a barrier to religious propagation. The other side has used it as a basis
for action.
* * *
But is it true that these places of worship are being used as bases for converting
Muslims to Christianity? Pastor Rosbani Setiawan, who is responsible for a place of
worship in Margahayu Raya, played down such accusations. He even pointed to their
parking lot attendant, a Muslim who has never been asked to convert. As for the Hati
Tak Bernoda Santa Perawan Maria Church—where he works on a daily basis—most of
the employees are also Muslims. "After working here for decades, they still perform
their [Islamic] prayers. There is no problem."
Pastor Setiawan has used the worship facility in Margahayu since 1986. He had
bought the house from Haji Azis, the head of the community unit at that time. The
pastor said that when he bought the home he asked for Azis’s permission to use it
for the spiritual development of the local Catholic community. "To get permission from
the public, we were helped by Pak Azis." They have worshipped there on Saturdays
ever since.
However, on Saturday at the end of August, this house was closed. At that time, local
residents and tens of BAP members arrived at the home and asked Pastor Iwan, as
Setiawan is known, to stop holding religious services. According to Marjani, head of
security for the community unit there, the closure was effected because residents
have long objected. In fact, he said, the caretakers of the home had been previously
reprimanded by the district authorities. "But they continued their activities," he said.
A similar fate befell a house of worship in Dayeuh Kolot. A home located in the
residential area there has been used as a place of worship since 1980, going by the
name of the Pasundan Christian Church. The place used to belong to someone
named Risa, which was then bought by the church. Half of the place was used as the
residence of Reverend Yuyun, and the rest was used as a place of worship. "We hold
religious services once a week, and that is only for two hours," said Merry.
According to Merry, they were initially going to follow the permission process, which
had already obtained the signatures of part of Sukabirus residents. However, she said
that the permit was held up at the desk of the Community Unit Head. Despite this,
they continued to hold religious services. Merry says that the congregation does not
only originate from the residents of Sukabirus. Of the congregation’s 200 families,
only two of them are actually Sukabirus residents. The rest are from Dayeuh Kolot,
Cimahi, Ciparay, Banjaran, Palasari, and Margahayu. Nevertheless, she claims that
there is a good relationship between the Pasundan Christian Church (GKP) and local
residents.
Merry even said that the church and locals have held joint activities on several
occasions. She referred to flood relief activities at the start of this year, and the time
when they worked hand-in-hand to deal with the dengue fever outbreak.
Kusnadi, a local public figure, collaborated this fact. The local residents, he said, have
never had a problem with the presence of the GKP. He even questioned the arrival of
AGAP and BAP, both of whom said they were acting in the name of the residents.
"Which residents of Sukabirus do they represent?" he said.
The position of Sukabirus residents is divided. According to Tjetjen Darmanto, head of
the local Community Unit, last July he made a pronouncement letter containing the
objections of residents regarding the GKP. The reason was, the GKP has violated the
joint decree regarding the establishment of places of worship. "Over 230 heads of
households signed the letter," he said. In Sukabirus, there are at least 300 families,
and 90 percent of them are Muslims.
According to Tjetjen, this was the third letter, after similar letters were circulated in
1985 and 2004. "Basically, we do not have a problem with the presence of the GKP.
The problem is, why don’t they comply with the SKB regulations," he asked.
* * *
Christian figures are very disappointed. In addition to insisting on a review of the SKB,
they also have mixed feelings about law enforcement officials, whom they feel have
not kept neutral. Former PGI Chairman Nathan Setiabudi accused local law
enforcement and government of giving their blessing to the closures. "That is very
absurd," he said. In his opinion, these closings are violations of public order. "So, the
police must straighten it out."
Tensions ran high when residents and AGAP followers arrived at the house in
Margahayu. Tempo photographer Budiyanto, who was present in the room during this
meeting, saw a number of police standing by. During this dialog, Pastor Iwan
graciously refused the closure.
He reasoned that the matter had to be resolved in court. This heated up the mood.
The crowd shouted "Allahu Akbar" several times. "There is a muspika here which has
the authority, as well as residents who reject the church. There is no need to go to
the courts," said the crowd. At that time, representatives of the muspika were
present, namely the district head of Margacinta, Margacinta District Police Chief, Adj.
Comr. Sugianta, and the secretary of Community Unit 16.
Pastor Iwan was finally willing to sign the church closure letter. "It is the best choice
which I can make in a bad situation. I am thinking about the safety of my
congregation and the house," he said to Tempo.
East Bandung Police Chief, Sr. Adj. Comr. Edison Sitorus, said that at that time the
police did allow church closures to take place. "Because the local muspika asked for
the closure, not on account of AGAP," he told Setiyardi from Tempo.
He referred to the SKB which says that closure is the decision of the regional head.
"My men only have the duty to ensure that a clash does not take place," said Edison.
The police chief emphasized that if AGAP conducted a closure, he would take action.
Mu’min himself emphasized that AGAP has never committed any acts of violence.
His group follows certain procedures each time they want to visit a place of worship.
Indeed there has not been any violence. But terror, intimidation and forbidding people
to worship has broken out all over—acts which are forbidden by God and country, but
which unfortunately have been allowed to take place by law enforcement officials.
Tulus Wijanarko, Ayu Cipta (Tangerang), Endang Purwanti, and Rana Akbari
(Bandung)
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