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2011 was not a good year for human rights in Indonesia. Starting with the persecution faced by the Ahmadiyah sect and continuing with the closure of the GKI Yasmin church in Bogor, the ongoing Papuan crisis and, at the end of the year, news of the Mesuji massacre, the year seemed perfectly designed to give way to a 2012 in which a child was charged for stealing a pair of a policeman’s sandals.

The wave of human right violations has caused no little public insecurity. Most of the cases have in common the fact that the victims are mostly from defenseless minorities.

The ignorant crimes of religious violence have been worsened by the fact that the Religious Affairs Ministry has been traditionally slanted to favor Muslims. The Religious Affairs Minister openly stated his preference for disbanding Ahmadiyah in August 2010. While the statement was made two years ago, it is a reminder that Indonesian public officials are capable of making irresponsible comments that are not subject to consequences of any sort.

The pluralism that has been long heralded by the government and praised by other countries is questionable. The absence of conflict does not mean our nation is peaceful; it is, in fact, a negative peace. Conflict is still likely in this nation of ours where oppression still continues.

Religious discrimination will exist due to systematic discrimination in Indonesian citizenship administration. It is still compulsory for all Indonesians to specify, in matters of citizenship, their adherence to one of six officially recognized religions. This creates problems as the religions of the world are not limited to these six. There are many world religions and faith systems such as Judaism, Zoroastrianism, Paganism and countless indigenous religions that remain unrecognized by the government. Atheism and agnosticism are not allowed, either. To be irreligious or secularist is to be an infidel.

The Baduy tribe in Banten province has long advocated recognition of the local faith, the Sunda Wiwitan. Its struggle has not yet realized a happy ending. The faith, still not recognized, is a reminder of systematic discrimination.

Legally, Indonesians can leave their religion blank in their identity card, or KTP, as stipulated in a 2006 regulation stating that citizens whose religion was not yet officially recognized could leave their KTP blank but still be serviced and documented in the civil database.

The open discrimination toward Ahmadis, Baduys or members of any faith outside the six official religions is a serious violation of basic human rights. Public officials should watch their words when commenting about their distaste toward other faiths as they could be charged on the basis of violating laws.

The sad picture of human rights is ironic as Indonesia constantly appears in headlines as a model example of how Islam and democracy can work together. Despite being the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia is not an Islamic nation.

Indonesia is currently transforming itself into a major world economy. From an economic perspective, it goes without saying that the nation needs quality human resources. But the basic security of religious freedom should be a part of that agenda.

In its short history, Indonesia has experienced a great deal of brain drain. From 1950 to 1967 there was repatriation of Dutch-Indonesians to the Netherlands, along with repatriation of Chinese-Indonesians to mainland China. After 1998, many Chinese Indonesians became targets of violence and escaped overseas. Many were middle class and refused to return. While the situation for Chinese-Indonesians has improved since the time of Gus Dur’s presidency, the others are declining.

The underdeveloped economy of Papua is in ironic juxtaposition with the Dutch’s occupation in the Dutch East Indies. Had the indigenous people been happy with Dutch occupation, the revolution would not have happened. The same goes with Papua. Had Papua been satisfied being an Indonesian province, the independence issue would not have started. The Round Table Conference in December 1949 did not include Papua as region that was included in the newly formed federation. Therefore, the inclusion of Papua in the current republic remains questionable.

The central government should inspect thoroughly its relationship with Papua. So far, it remains horizontal. The excessive use of military force might be remembered by Papuans as military aggression but as something different by the Indonesian history books.

While it is obvious that Indonesia will keep enjoying economic growth in the midst of global recession, it will be a gloomy year for law enforcement and human rights. An underage child was taken to court for stealing a pair of sandals, while people convicted of graft offenses receive light punishment despite causing trillions of rupiah in losses from the state budget. These miscarriages of law enforcement are morally damaging and escalate public distrust and cynicism.

The legal system has been so dysfunctional that it has reached the point that if you want to steal, the best advice might be to steal as much as possible, so at least you have money to bribe the judges and pay the lawyers.

 

Calvin Michel Sidjaja is a researcher for HD Asia Advisory in Jakarta. The opinions expressed are his own.