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OPINION NATIONAL INDONESIA

Indonesia’s troubled minorities

By Greg Fealy
September 13, 2018 — 10.00pm

Meiliana, a 44-year-old Buddhist mother of Chinese descent, sat crying in disbelief in a North Sumatra court in late August. The
judges had just sentenced her to 18 months’ jail for blasphemy because she complained to a neighbor in 2016 about the ear-splitting
volume of amplified calls to prayer from a nearby mosque. Her complaint had sparked violent backlash from local Muslim groups,
who had stoned her home, forcing her and her family to flee to another city. They also attacked and seriously damaged twelve
Buddhist temples in the area. The same court that sentenced her showed leniency to eight attackers arrested by police, giving them
jail terms of just 1-2 months.

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Muslims in Indonesia perform an afternoon prayer during Ramadan. AP

Meiliana’s story shone a spotlight on Indonesia’s draconian blasphemy laws and more broadly on how the nation treats its
minorities. For a country that presents itself to the world as a moderate Muslim-majority democracy that respects diversity and
enjoins religious and ethnic harmony, Indonesia has faced increasing criticism for rising intolerance and sectarianism. Human
rights advocates argued that the violent reaction to Meiliana’s mosque complaint and her subsequent jailing are inseparable from
the fact that she is from a double minority: Sino-Indonesians comprise less than 4 per cent of the nation and Buddhists less than 2
per cent. The Chinese have long been targets of social unrest, particularly from the majority Muslim community.

Assessing how moderate or intolerant Indonesia is towards its minorities is more difficult to assess than it might first appear. For
example, a number of well-regarded non-government organisations annually compile figures on acts of religious intolerance. One
such NGO, Setara Institute, recorded 201 breaches of religious freedom across Indonesia in 2017, most of which were directed at
Christian, Buddhist, Hindu and Confucian minorities. Viewed in isolation, this is a significant number.

But on the other hand, in a religiously diverse nation of some 250 million people, several hundred cases might suggest that
intolerance is relatively rare.

What these records do show is that incidents of religious intolerance have declined steadily over the past decade. This is also
supported by public opinion surveys conducted between 2010 and 2016 that reveal intolerance toward religious minorities fell
nationally over the last six years, though the influential Muslim middle-classes were becoming less tolerant of non-Muslims.

But sheer numbers alone may not capture the conditions of life for minorities, be they religious, ethnic or sexual. For instance, anti-
gay and transgender sentiment has become commonplace in mainstream discourse over the past three years. So far, only a handful
of cases have involved police action, with the most notorious being the public caning of two gay men in Aceh under that province’s
sharia law code earlier this year. But gay and transgender Indonesians now feel vulnerable to community disapproval or ‘outing’ and
fear ostracism or worse for their sexual orientation.

Another case that has had deep reverberations across minority communities is that of the former governor of Jakarta, Basuki Tjahaja
Purnomo (Ahok), who was Christian Chinese. In 2016, Ahok was accused of insulting the Qur’an, sparking massive street and social
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media protests against him. A good deal of the anti-Ahok campaigning had racist and sectarian overtones. Although approval for
Ahok’s achievements as governor exceeded 70 per cent, only 43 per cent of Jakartans voted for him in the April 2017 election, many
citing religious reasons. Shortly after the election he, like Meiliana, was found guilty of blasphemy and jailed for two years. The
Ahok case was a setback for minority politicians and officials as it bolstered campaigns to limit high office to those who shared the
same religion and ethnicity of the local majority. It also drove home the perils for any minority leader commenting upon Islamic
issues.

The broader question here is how inclusive is Indonesia? The nation’s motto is ‘Unity in Diversity’ and its constitution enshrines a
wide array of civil rights, including those relating to religion and ethnicity. Indonesians are proud of what they see as their
acceptance of difference. But as with many nations in the world, including Australia, Indonesia’s tolerance of minorities fluctuates
and is increasingly contested within the broader community. Governments are under pressure to restrict minority rights and
opportunities, and to serve majoritarian agendas.

Indeed, politics is one of the main obstacles to improving Indonesia’s treatment of vulnerable minorities. President Joko Widodo
and many of his ministers are pluralists and well-disposed to ensuring minority rights. But they are wary of the power of Islamist
groups to turn religion into a weapon against them. For example, Widodo refuses to publicly condemn either the Ahok or Meiliana
blasphemy verdicts for fear of being accused of failing to defend Islam, even though palace sources concede he disapproves.

Problematic laws such as that on blasphemy have such strong support from Islamic groups (and some Christian groups as well) that
there is scant prospect of their repeal or significant amendment. Moreover, parliament is currently deliberating on a bill that would
criminalise a wide range of homosexual and transgender behaviour.

Australia has, for many years, taken a low profile on minority rights issues in Indonesia, with successive Australian leaders
preferring to praise Indonesia’s moderation. One constructive role that we could play would be to voice stronger concern at abuses
and and discrimination, and also to provide greater funding to civil society groups that actively campaign for minority rights.

This year’s Indonesia Update at The Australian National University will discuss in detail Indonesia’s treatment of its minorities,
both historically and contemporaneously. It will examine the constitutional and legal frameworks governing minority rights, as well
as the shifting discourses that have accompanied and shaped minority groups’ marginalization and activism. The Update includes
sessions devoted to religious, ethnic, disability and sexual rights. At a time when Indonesia’s record of tolerance is increasingly
under scrutiny, the update will provide a forum for evaluating how moderate is Australia’s neighbour.

Greg Fealy is associate professor of Indonesian politics in the Department of Political and Social Change, ANU.

The Indonesia Update will be held in the Coombs Lecture Theatre, 14-15 September 2018.

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