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INDONESIA: Yet another attack on a group advocating religious freedom

June 4, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Case: AHRC-UAC-127-2008

5 June 2008
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INDONESIA: Yet another attack on a group advocating religious freedom

ISSUES: Freedom of religion; police police negligence; freedom of assembly
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed of yet another attack on a peaceful gathering of groups advocating religious freedom by a group of Muslims in Jakarta on 1 June 2008. The policemen, who were in the area when it happened, failed to intervene to prevent the attack. At least 28 persons, some with serious head injuries, were wounded during the attack.

CASE DETAILS:

On 1 June 2008, around 1pm several people who are part of the group National Alliance for Freedom of Religion (Aliansi Kebangsaan untuk Kebebasan Beragama dan Berkeyakinan - AKKBB), an alliance of group advocating religious freedom in Indonesia, gathered to commemorate the birth of Pancasila, the official philosophical foundation of the Indonesian state. They first converged behind the Gambir railway Station which is located in Central Jakarta.

There the group started to meet with several others and later walked towards the courtyard of the Monas, a national monument in Jakarta. There they met other members of their group as well. While there, a police officer, who was wearing plain clothes and two other policemen in uniform were deployed in the area.

About twenty minutes later, a huge crowed of about 500 members of the Islamic Defender Front-Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (FPI-HTI), came walking in one line towards the place were the other group had gathered. They were wearing white and green color robes and carrying bamboo sticks. They then started beating the AKKBB members as they yelled, "Allah is great", "you Ahmadiyah!"

Even though the members of the FPI-HTI had already started attacking the group members of the AKKBB, police officers, who were in the area, did not immediately intervene to prevent or to protect the group. As the group members of AKKBB were surprised by the sudden attack they were unable to protect themselves.

When the FPI-HTI carried out the attack they separated into four different groups. One of the groups was seen carrying sharp objects; such as swords, samurais, spears and sand, which was thrown at their victims.

Soon after the initial assault, the first group dispersed and the second group likewise yelled "Allah is great" and ordered the first group, who had already self dispersed, to attack their victims once again.

A police officer who came by a patrol car ran away from the crowd after having been kicked by several members of the FPI-HTI. Some of AKKBB had also asked other police officers deployed in the area to do something to prevent further violence, but the policemen whom they had asked for help also ran away, not wanting to get involved.

However, despite the absence of any sort of assistance or intervention by the police officers, the AKKBB members were able to escape from being violently attacked further. The attacked had left at least 28 persons wounded, some of whom suffered serious head injuries; other suffered bruises and contusions.

More policemen arrived on motorbikes, and started rounding up the members of the FPI-HTI; however, even in their presence the group burned a car and sound system belonging to the AKKBB.

Some of the members of the AKKBB decided to remain at the place fearing that they may be attacked further should they try to leave. At that time though, the FPI-HTI had already left the location and walked out towards the Presidential Palace joining their other colleagues who were also having demonstration against an oil price hike.

It was not until around 3pm that the AKKB decided to disperse. Those who had injuries were taken to the nearest hospital.

On June 4, at least 56 persons who are reportedly group members of the FPI-HTI were arrested for questioning in connection with the incident. However, it is not known as to whether these persons were directly involved in violently attacking the victims.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Apart from attacks on those advocating for religious freedom, the AHRC had in the past also reported attacks on religious minorities. Though the police do conduct their investigation into this violence against religious minorities, they do not produce any substantial results. They, too, were unable to hold those responsible either for instigating or perpetrating violent to account. The freedom of religion and its protection has since been undermined in the country.

As we have already reported, in October 2005, members of the Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic religious sect, had also been attacked by other villagers living in Ketapang Village in Lombok Island. The attackers, numbering about 50 to 100, have had their houses damaged. For details please read: UA-193-2005.

On April 27 of this year, similar attacks on the Ahmadiyah once again took place in Sukabumi town, Curug district, West Java. The attack resulted to the burning of their mosque and had their other facilities damaged as well. For details please read: AHRC-UAC-108-2008.

There has been an existing law, Law No. 1/1965, which prohibits anyone from deliberately making interpretations of any of the recognized religions or publicly engaging in activities which is considered deviates. This law has been mainly referred to as the legal basis for banning religion there.

In addition, it has also been used by the General Attorney Office under the former regime to pass a regulation, the Letter of Decision of the General Attorney Number 108/JA/5/1984, which establishes a Coordinating Board for Monitoring Mystical Beliefs in Society. For further commentary on this, please also read: Indonesia's curbs on religious rights.


SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write to the authorities listed below urging them to ensure that a thorough investigation is conducted into this incident and those responsible held accountable. The government must also ensure to prevent further attacks on minority groups as they exercise their religious practice. Any existing policies or law in contravention to religious rights must also be amended or abolished.

Please be informed that the AHRC has also written separate letters to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Religion calling for an intervention in this case.

To support this appeal, please click here:

Sample letter:

Dear __________,

INDONESIA: Yet another attack on a group advocating religious freedom

Name of victim/injuries their suffered:
1. Imdadun Rahmat, suffers bruises all over the body and fractured head
2. M. Guntur Romli, bruises all over the body and fractured nose
3. KH Maman Imanulhaq, bruises all over the body, cuts on chin
4. Ahmad Suaedy, bruises on back, cuts on chin
5. Dr. Syafii Anwar, cuts on the head
6. Hamid Taher, concussion and fractured left hand
7. Sunandar, bruises all over the body
8. Joanes, had slight injuries on the head
9. Bernard, minor head injury
10. Omink, concussion
11. Doni, bruises on stomach and foot
12. Sopir, bruises and cuts on the body
13. Yogi, bruises on his hand and back
14. Heru, bruises on back
15. Siti Maryam,b ruises on right temple and knee
16. Ela, cuts on hip and knee
17. Ataurrahman, forehead bleed
18. Sarip, bruises and cuts on his back
19. Yaya, bruises on the back side of his neck
20. Dani, bruises on his back
21. Nurbarjah, bleeding on the head
22. Yanto, nose bleed
23. Jaka, hand bleed
24. Lukman, bruises on his foot and back
25. Suleman, cuts on head
26. Said, bruises all over the body
27. Kusworo, bruises on some parts of the body
28. Sair, cuts on fingers
All of the victims are members of the National Alliance for Freedom of Religion (AKKBB)
Name of alleged perpetrators: at least 500 members of the Islamic Defender Front and Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (FPI-HTI)
Date of incident: Between 1pm to 3pm on 1 June 2008
Place of incident: Monas, Central Jakarta

I am writing to voice my deep concern regarding the violent attack by members of an Islamic group against a group who are advocating for religious freedom on 1 June 2008. I am deeply concerned by this yet another attack on religious minorities. This attack, however, had similar underlying motivation to those have been perpetrated on religious minorities; for instance, the Ahmadiyah.

The groups were peacefully gathering to commemorate the birth of Pancasila when they were violently attacked by this group of Muslims. The latter, who were armed with bladed weapons and bamboo sticks, had them beaten which resulted to the severe and minor injuries of the victims mentioned above. The group of Muslims also burned the car and destroyed their sound system of their victims.

I have learned that shortly before the attacked, there were police officers who were seen deployed in the area. They, however, have not been able to prevent them from being violently attacked; nor they took action on the victim's request for them to take immediate action to prevent them from being attacked further. The police, instead, ran away from the crowd leaving them without any help.

I am disturbed by such nature of violence because the group, whom the Islamic groups attacked, had been attacked while they were exercising their religious practices and that the police authorities fail in protecting them. Perpetrating violence on pretext of practicing religious conservatism is of serious concern.  The failure of the police to take adequate action into this phenomenon is unacceptable.

Though the targeted group has informed the police of their peaceful gathering; they however, failed by ensuring that they are protected from any forms of violent attacks and harassment. I am ware that this is not the first time these manner of attacks had taken place their. As you are aware, there have been incidents of violent attacks of religious minorities in the country.

In light of the above, I urge you to ensure the perpetrators are punished according to the law after thorough investigations. I also urge the police to have those responsible identified, arrested and effectively prosecuted. The police must not allow similar violence to reoccur. This incident illustrates the police failure and inability to protect the lives and properties of the vulnerable sectors. I further urge you to ensure the protection for this group in exercise of their religion.

I take this opportunity to draw your attention to the fact that as a state party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the government of Indonesia is under obligation to protect religious freedom of all persons

In this regard, I urge you to take necessary steps to ensure that exercise of the freedom of religion is protected and enjoyed in the country.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Susilo Bambang Yudoyono
President
Republic of Indonesia
Presidential Palace
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara
Jakarta Pusat 10010
INDONESIA
Tel: + 62 21 3845627 ext 1003
Fax: + 62 21 231 41 38, 345 2685, 345 7782
E-mail: presiden@ri.go.id

2. Mr. M. Maftuh Basyuni
Minister of Religion
Religion Department of Republic Indonesia
Jalan Lapangan Banteng Barat
No. 3 - 4 Jakarta 10710
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 3812306, 322697, 361654, 361642
E-mail : pikda@depag.go.id

3. Gen. Sutanto
Chief of National Police
Jl. Trunojoyo No. 3
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 721 8012
Fax: +62 21 720 7277
E-mail: polri@polri.go.id

4. Mr. Wisnu Subroto
Chairperson
Coordinating Board Coordinating Board
for Monitoring Mystical Beliefs in Society
Kejaksaan Agung RI
Jl. Sultan Hasanuddin No. 1
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: + 62 21 7221337, 7397602
Fax: + 62 21 7250213
E-mail: postmaster@kejaksaan.or.id

5. Mr. Hendarman Supandji
Attorney General
Kejaksaan Agung RI
Jl. Sultan Hasanuddin No. 1
Jakarta Selatan
INDONESIA
Tel: + 62 21 7221337, 7397602
Fax: + 62 21 7250213
E-mail: postmaster@kejaksaan.or.id

6. Mr. Ifdhal Kasim
Chairperson
KOMNAS HAM (National Human Rights Commission)
Jl. Latuharhary No. 4B Menteng
Jakarta Pusat 10310
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 3925230
Fax: +62 21 3151042/3925227
E-mail: info@komnasham.or.id


Thank you.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ua@ahrchk.org) 

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
AHRC-UAC-127-2008
Countries :
Issues :
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.