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harmony tended to be structural and     fatwa and the Joint Decree (SKB) of                   government policies, it is important to   (Ministry of Religious Affairs) and the
                                          politically oriented. 20                the Minister of Religious Affairs, the                underline that the final part of Law no. 1   MUI but they had gone too far in their
                                                                                  Minister of the Interior and the Attorney             PNPS 1965 ---the main point of reference   efforts to bring Indonesia back to Islamic
                                          So far, the FKUB has been unable to
                                          detect, dampen, or find solutions for   General which ordered the cessation of                for government policies related to religious   orthodoxy. Because of this, some circles
                                          disrupting unrest or sectarian conflicts   the activities of the Ahmadiyah group              harmony and for the Joint Decree---    were of the opinion that,as it is the
                                                                                  to expand its unwanted influences
                                          with religious backgrounds. The violence                                                      states “warn and instruct citizens in   basis for policies on religious harmony,
                                          radical Islamic groups perpetrate       (2008). In their actions against potential            general to preserve and maintain religious   the PNPS law should be considered
                                          against minority communities such as    violations of the rules, they claimed to              harmony and peace as well as the order   problematic andin violation of the
                                          the Jamaat Ahmadiyah Indonesia (JAI)    have preceded the legal authorities. That             of social life by not committing actions   1945 Constitution and the Universal
                                                                                  security forces sometimes did not take
                                          in West Java, Lombok and Banten, the    any anticipatory action and preferred                 against the law against followers and   Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR),
                                          Shiites in Madura, and other conflicts and   to keep silent, despite knowing of the           members of the JAI board.” However,    as well as detrimental to religious
                                          violent actions instigated by disputesover                                                    vandalism and physical violence against   minority groups. Therefore, in 2009,
                                          the establishment of houses of worship   violence would only made the matters                 religious minorities persists. The problem   seven NGOs and some individuals
                                                                                  worse.
                                                                                        22
                                          such as in Bogor, Bekasi, and many                                                            increasingly worsened when the MUI     applied for a judicial review of the PNPS
                                          other areas are proof that the FKBU does   Various pro-democracy groups and                   and the Ministry of Religious Affairs   law to the Constitutional Court (MK).
                                          not function well in those regions. 21  pro-human rights NGOs, intellectuals,                 blamed the JAI itself for having become   The MK then invited a debate among
                                                                                  religious figures, and lawyers pointed out            the victims of these crimes. According to   community organizations, religious
                                          In some cases, it is unfair to blame or   that the Joint Decree on the Ahmadiyah,             a report written by Bagir and others on   leaders, and Muslims and human rights
                                          discredit only the FKUB. As a matter    and thus the Ministry of Religious Affairs,           the basis of the PNPS law and the SKB,   activists. Unfortunately, after the trial and
                                          of fact, in the Ahmadiyah case it was   had been interfering in the internal and              Minister of Religious Affairs Suryadharma   hearing the opinion of experts held from
                                          clear that the perpetrators of violence,   external affairs of a religious community.         Ali declared that he could not allow the   February 4 to 24 March 2010 the attempt
                                          arsonists, and murderers justified      In fact, the Ministry of Religious Affairs            Ahmadiyah case to drag on because it   to a judicial review failed, because the
                                          their actions based on the 2005 MUI     explained clearly that its concern with               would be tantamount to continuing the   Constitutional Court overruled it. 25

                                          20. Thalchah Hasan 1999, “Reaktualisasi   religious harmony was limited only to               problem.  According to him, disbanding
                                                                                                                                               24
                                          Pembinaan Kerukunan Umat Beragama”,                                                                                                  The Constitutional Court had three
                                          unpublished article.                    external affairs and did not include                  the Ahmadiyah was indeed risky, but to   options: first, to declare the law
                                          21.  See the 2011 annual reports of the Wahid   religious communities’internal affairs. 23    condone it would be an equally great risk.   constitutional and therefore it is
                                          Institute, Lampu merah kebebasan beragama,                                                    In August 2010 the Minister of Religious
                                          (Jakarta: Wahid Institute Annual Report 2011);   With regard to the rising problem of                                                25.  See Mudzhar 2010, “Pengaturan Kebebasan
                                          see also Zainal Abidin Bagir et.al. 2011, Laporan   violence and vigilantism caused by        Affairs insisted that the government   Beragama dan Penodaan Agama di Indonesia
                                          Tahunan Kehidupan Beragama di Indonesia 2010,                                                 should dissolve JAI.                   dan Berbagai Negara”, a paper on the study of
                                          (Yogyakarta: CRCS UGM); Rizal Panggabean   22. Panggabean and Ali-Fauzi 2014, Pemolisian                                             the Constitution Council decreeno. 140 dated
                                          and Ihsan Ali-Fauzi 2014, Pemolisian Konflik   Konflik.                                       The violence on the basis of the law thus   April 19, 2010 on the judicial review of the law
                                          Keagamaan di Indonesia, (Jakarta: PUSAD   23.  See Mudzhar 2013, “Lingkungan dan Peran        got a fresh breeze from the government   no.1/PNPS/1965, the Ministry of Law and Human
                                          Paramadina, MPRK UGM and The Asia       Strategis FKUB” and also Taher 1997, Aspiring for                                            Rights. See also Bagir etal. 2011, Laporan
                                          Foundation).                            the Middle Path.                                      24. Bagir et.al. 2011, Laporan Tahunan, p. 47.  Tahunan.



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