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October 29, 2005
Indonesia: Muslim Attacks Upon Christians Escalating Again
We brought you the report of the grisly attack upon teenage schoolgirls, where three were decapitated while walking to school in Poso, Central Sulawesi. The attack has not been confirmed as a Muslim attack, but the region has been the scene of Muslim/Christian conflicts which have killed 1000 people, mostly between 2000 and 2001, though there was a bomb in Poso in May, killing 22, and another bomb two days ago.
The Sulawesi conflict was part of a wider war between Muslims and Christians in the nearby Moluccan archipelago, which claimed the lives of 9,000 people between 1999 and 2002. The resumption of Muslim attacks upon Christians in the Sulawesi area appears to be underway.
But attacks upon Christian communities are not confined to Central Sulawesi. We brought you a short resume of current minority persecutions in Indonesia, Indonesia: Vigilantes of Islam. We mentioned the massacre at Ambon in the Moluccas, islands to the north of Sulawesi, where Muslims under the leadership of Muslim cleric Jaffar Umar Thalib of the Islamist organisation Laskar Jihad led an assult on a Christian village called Soya, outside Ambon City.
The attack on Sunday 28 April 2002, in which 21 people died, women and children included, from decapitations machete strikes and burnings, was the culmination of a longer process of attacks, which had begun in earnest in 2000. Most of the attacks on Christians in the Moluccan conflicts were by followers of Laksar Jihad. This group has officially disbanded, and its leader, Yemeni-Indonesian Jaffar Umar Thalib was acquitted in 2003 of sowing hate in the Moluccas.
The large island of Java has seen a recent official persecution against Christians by the Muslim majority, with the authorities making no apparent efforts to either control or condemn the attacks. A report from Christian Solidarity Worldwide, from 24 October this week, describes the recent troubles. In the Bekasi area of west Java, three churches were closed down by the Mayor of Bekasi, who also ordered the Christians from these churches to either conduct their worship in either their churches or their homes.
The churches affected were Lutheran, Presbyterian and Pentecostal. On Sunday, October 16th, a group of 300 Muslims conducted their own religious ceremonies at the churches, and the Christian congregations moved onto the street to conduct their worship. They were followed by the Muslims who verbally and physically abused the Christians. Reverend Anna, pastor of the Presbyterian church and chairman of the church synod, was pushed into a drain. Police watched the events, but did nothing. There are reports that some police actually became involved in the intimidation. Since 2004, about thirty churches have been closed in West Java.
A report yesterday (Friday 28th October) from Compass Direct describes how in the West Java town of Cikarang Baru, a church that was being built has been halted on orders of the Bekasi district secretary, Dr H.R. Heri Koesaeri. Demonstrations had begun on 19 September when 500 Islamic protesters arrived at the construction site, and a lesser group of 200 returned on 29 September, and again on October 3.
The church, according to pastor Benny Assa, was being built with the permission of the chief of the Bekasi district, Dr H.M. Saleh Manaf, who has since confirmed the legal authorisation of the church's construction. The protesters, who belong to various groups, including the Hizbullah Front and the Salafy Islamic movement, have effectively blocked a legally-validated scheme. Dr Manaf has said: "If there is a group of people who opposed my recommendation, then they are opposing the government's policy, and they will be facing the law."
The problem facing many Christians regarding church construction is rooted in a Joint Ministerial Decree of 1969 called the SKB, dating from the time of Haji Mohamed Suharto (pictured), the second ruler (or dictator) of Indonesia, who was in power from 1967 to 1998. This law required a permit from local authorities to build a place of worhip. Suharto is still reviled for his suppression of even Muslim groups, which may explain the current government's inefficiency in tackling Islamic extremism, lest it alienate voters. The churches in Indonesia are often denied these permits, and Muslim militants are claiming their campaigns against church communities have legal validity.
The insistence by extremists that churches must prove their possession of permits means that in three West Java districts, Bekasi, Bandung and Sukabumi, three more churches are earmarked for closure. Malang city, East Java, 24 churches are under threat of closure, and two have been shut during the past three weeks. In Jakarta, 18 churches fear closure after police showed an interest in their services. Other militant groups involved in campaigning against Christians are Hizb ut-Tahrir and Front Pembela Islam (Islamic Defenders Front), but Christian Solidarity Worldwide suggests the main thrust of the current campaign is being led by the National Council of Ulemas (MUI).
We reported earlier how this group, the most "senior" of Muslim bodies in Indonesia, announced in July a fatwa, which had 11 decrees, including activities involving interfaith, pluralist and "liberal" thought. These declarations have been viewed by many Muslims as a decree to validate attacks against non-Muslims, and "heretical" Muslim groups such as the Ahmadiyyah, who in September had several houses attacked in Sukadana, West Java.
The Front Pembela Islam, or Islamic Defender's Front make no secret of their hostility to Christians. Established in August 1998, they are now active in 22 provinces. Their leader, Habib Muhammad Riziek Syihab was educated in Saudi Arabia. Many of FPI's leaders are said to be Arabic. They have a paramilitary wing called Laskar Pembela Islam, who operate raids upon bars, cafes, pool halls, massage parlours and gaming halls. A report of attacks made by the group during the last Ramadan can be found here. In 2001, they led an anti-American campaign in the country, in protest at US involvement with Afghanistan.
There is widespread belief that FPI has government tolerance, a view backed up by their being allowed to establish a large relief camp in Banda Aceh following the tsunami of 24 December 2004. A report from Fox News from January 21 2005 decscribed how the FPI were intimidating Christian aid workers, accusing them of trying to convert Muslims:
Hasri Husan, a leader of the Islamic Defenders Front, a militant Muslim group that is operating a refugee camp in Banda Aceh, made his feelings clear.FPI had 5000 people in Aceh after the tsunami, along with Hizb ut-Tahrir and Laskar Mujahideen (Mujahideen Army), according to the Jamestown Foundation."We will chase down any Christian group that does anything beyond offering aid," he said before making a slashing motion across his throat.
The ruling by the MUI (National Council of Ulemas) seems to have now started a process where various Islamic extremists, who do not fall under the category of "international terrorists" are nonetheless reviving past conflicts between Muslims and non-Muslim groups.
Yusuf Kalla the vice president of Indonesia has stated that madrassas will be watched for signs of extremist teachings. This is a measure to be encouraged, but it appears his government is either too weak or too fearful to actively engage the militant groups who exist in all parts of Indonesia. These groups are now acting as if they have a green light to fulfill their aims, which ultimately involve instituting sharia, and victimising other groups which do not share their narrow and orthodox Islamic perspectives.
On Thursday, the US government announced that travellers should beware of visiting Indonesia, unless absolutely necessary. Those who do visit should "be aware of their surroundings at all times, and vary their routes and times in carrying out daily activities."
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at October 29, 2005 8:13 PM
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