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UPDATE (Indonesia): Decree banning religious group must be revoked

June 11, 2008

ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION – URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal Update: AHRC-UAU-036-2008

12 June 2008
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INDONESIA: Decree banning religious group must be revoked

ISSUES: Threats; religious and human rights; freedom of religion; equality before the law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) writes with deep concern on the issuance of a decree banning a religious minority, Ahmadiyah, from spreading their religious practices by the government on 9 June 2008. The AHRC is concerned that the decree would encourage other Muslim groups critical of them to carry out more attacks placing them in unnecessary risks.

UPDATED INFORMATION:

On June 5, the AHRC reported that a gathering of group advocating religious freedom had been attacked by a group of Muslims. The incident, however, was yet another instance of religious minorities targeted for supposedly deviating from the mainstream Islamic beliefs. See: AHRC-UAC-127-2008.

Days after the said incident, the government of Indonesia issued a Joint Ministerial Decree Number 199/2008 which imposes restrictions banning the Ahmadiyah from spreading their religious practices and interpretations on the pretext that they deviate from the principal teachings of Islam. An imprisonment of five years was also imposed on anyone who violates the decree. The full text of the said Decree, however, is not yet immediately available.

However, prior to the issuance of the decree, one of the leaders of the Islamic Defender Front-Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (FPI-HTI), Munarman, has distributed his videotape to television station in Jakarta demanding that the government bans the Ahmadiyah. He also said he would turn himself in to the police once the government bans the group.

It is Munarman and his group who were responsible for attacking a peaceful gathering of a religious group advocating for religious freedom on June 1. He was also captured in a camera strangling someone during the incident. Munarman went into hiding after delivering a speech of hate and provocation. He however videotaped a statement which was broadcasted by a television station in Jakarta calling for the government to ban Ahmadiyah.

Not long after the publication of the video, the government, through the Minister of Religion, Minister of Domestic Affair, and the Attorney General have signed and issued the Decree on June 9.  The authorities, particularly the Attorney General, however claims that the decree did not aim at banning the Ahmadiyah group, but rather orders its followers to return to  "mainstream Islam" belief.

However, not only did the decree put Ahmadiyah in unnecessary risk, furthermore, it likewise causes anxieties amongst them. Now the group fears they would be targeted more by the groups critical of them. They were deeply disturbed that there would be more attacks against them by those Muslim groups and other groups on the pretext of the issuance of the Decree. The Decree also effectively legitimized whatever action that may be taken against the minority group.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

The issuance of this decree undermines the Religious freedom, as one of the fundamental human rights, in Indonesia.

In doing so, the government violates its own commitment to ensure protection of freedom of religion under the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which it is a State party since 2006 and the provision of its Constitution which respects everyone to hold his/her own religion and religious beliefs.

In light of the above, the AHRC urges the government to revoke the implementation of the Decree in compliance with its obligations to ensure guarantee and protection of religious freedom in the country. In regards, they must also ensure that the police are able to immediately provide adequate protection to prevent possible attacks on them, or prevent them from being harmed.

The rise of violence against the Ahmadiyah group, which continues unabated, began in 2005 following the issuance of a Fathwa, an Islamic decree issued by a mufti or a religious lawyer on a specific issue, which bans the group from practicing their religion. See UA-193-2005.

In July 2007, similar attacks also took place wherein an Ahmadiyah mosque in West Java was attacked by mobs from three other Islamic sects. See: UA-215-2007. In May this year, another mosque of Ahmadiyah in Sukabumi, West Java was burned down: See UAC-108-2008.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please write letters to the concerned authorities below demanding for the Indonesian government to revoke the decree.

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: Decree banning religious group must be revoked

I am writing to raise my serious concern for the issuance of the Joint Ministerial Decree Number 199/2008 on June 9, which imposes restrictions on a religious group, Ahmadiyah, effectively banning the group from spreading their religious beliefs or from freely practicing their religion.

I have learned that the issuance of the decree took place days after a religious groups advocating for religious freedom were attacked on June 1. It is reported that one of those attackers, Munarman, a member of the Islamic Defender Front-Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (FPI-HTI), has demanded to have the group banned.

Munarman is reported to have issued the demand in public in a videotape broadcast in Jakarta in exchange for his surrender. Munarman himself was being located by the authorities for being responsible for hate speech and provocation. Nevertheless, days after his demands were broadcast, the said decree was issued.

I urge the concerned authorities to immediately revoke the implementation of this decree; and that it must refrain from making public statements undermining the religious minorities themselves. I am saddened by the government's issuance of this policy, which aggravates and places the minorities in further risk, instead of ensuring the respect and protection in practice of their religious beliefs.

I am aware that the attack on Ahmadiyah, which began in 2005, has been continuing but the authorities remain unable to effectively address this situation. They remain unable to afford protection and to ensure that they are prevented from being attacked further.

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

7. Mr. Mardiyanto
Minister of Home Affairs
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara No. 7
Jakarta Pusat
INDONESIA
Tel: +62 21 381 1120
Fax: +62 21 381 1120
Email: pusdatinkomtel@depdagri.go.id


Thank you.

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

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Update
Document ID :
AHRC-UAU-036-2008
Countries :
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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.