Khabar Southeast Asia

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Uprooting the causes of religious violence

By Ismira Lutfia Tisnadibrata for Khabar Southeast Asia in Jakarta

December 27, 2012

Members of the Religious Freedom Solidarity Forum (Forum Solidaritas Kebebasan Beragama) perform a theatrical act in front of the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on February 22nd, urging the government to guarantee religious freedom for all citizens. [Photos by Ismira Lutfia Tisnadibrata]

Members of the Religious Freedom Solidarity Forum (Forum Solidaritas Kebebasan Beragama) perform a theatrical act in front of the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta on February 22nd, urging the government to guarantee religious freedom for all citizens. [Photos by Ismira Lutfia Tisnadibrata]

As concerns rise over religious intolerance in Indonesia, a local NGO is taking steps to halt the disturbing trend.

Worshippers from across Jakarta pray at National Monument Square on August 15th, calling for an end to religious persecution.

Worshippers from across Jakarta pray at National Monument Square on August 15th, calling for an end to religious persecution.

Lazuardi Birru (LB) was formed in 2009. Its name means "blue horizon", and signifies looking toward a peaceful future. Among other activities, the group conducts youth outreach efforts aimed at dispelling ignorance and boosting awareness.

"We educate students participating in our programme about the concepts of religious majority and minority. We try to provide some balancing to their radical religious thinking," chairwoman Dhyah Madya told Khabar via telephone.

Research data, she said, demonstrates the urgency of the problem. In a 2010-2011 survey conducted by LB among 4,800 Indonesians from all 33 provinces, 1.3 % of respondents admitted to having committed attacks or assaults driven by religion – including attacks against non-Islamic houses of worship, Dhyah said.

"The survey also showed that 15 % of respondents claimed that they endorse such violent acts and would likely do so should the opportunity arise. This percentage is obviously alarming," she told Khabar

Misunderstanding jihad

Separately, a Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace 2012 report on freedom of religion and beliefs recorded a total of 635 cases of religious intolerance this year, including 317 acts of violence. West Java experienced the highest number of cases of religious intolerance, with 76.

Dhyah said that jihad is typically the rationale used to justify violent behaviour.

"Our first step is to try to correct such thoughts. We neutralise their positive inclination towards the violent jihad concept and set it back to zero at least. Our goal is then to reduce it further to a negative inclination in committing violent jihad and continuously maintain their thoughts at that level," she said.

Prominent Indonesian clerics and educators have sought to correct mistaken understandings of jihad, refuting the notion that Islam allows violence to be carried out against civilians. Repentant ex-militants have said they misunderstood the concept.

According to Ahmad Qisai, an expert from the Paramadina Graduate School of Diplomacy, said the government should increase efforts to empower Islamic boarding schools with messages of pluralistic Islam.

"We have to introduce ideas that the right jihad for our country is to fight ignorance, illiteracy, poverty, and to push for our people's welfare instead of resorting to violence," he said.

Muslims "should set the example" in promoting tolerance

Haeruddin, a Muslim participant in a September camp run by LB in Cibubur, East Jakarta, says he knows what it is like to be part of a religious minority.

The 20-year-old student of Islamic law hails from Maros, South Sulawesi, but has lived in Christian-majority Papua since 2003.

In Papua, he says, Muslims sometimes have to endure a backlash from locals angry about harassment of Christians in other parts of the country.

"We experience the adverse effect whenever we see news reports of Muslims oppressing the non-Muslims in the western part [of the archipelago]," Haeruddin told Khabar Southeast Asia by phone from Jayapura, the provincial capital of Papua.

As a result, the Muslim community in Papua has sometimes encountered difficulties conducting religious activities and building mosques. The cases were resolved when local officials and public figures stepped in to mediate, he said.

Haeruddin says he himself once lacked an adequate understanding of religious tolerance. But he now believes that to be a real Indonesian is to acknowledge religious diversity and embrace pluralism.

"We learned [at the camp] that no religion is above the other and that only God knows what the absolute truth is. We also learned that instead of exhibiting self-righteousness as the majority, we Muslims should set the example in protecting the minority," he said.

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