Indonesia: British MPs condemn Ahmadiyah attackers’ lenient sentences

The statements add to other criticism by numerous international groups against the ruling made by the Serang District Court in Banten on July 28, sentencing the 12 perpetrators to between three and six months in prison.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | Int'l Desk
Source/Credit: The Jakarta Post
By Bagus BT Saragih | August 5, 2011

Two members of British parliament, Siobhain McDonagh and Eric Lubbock, have condemned the recent lenient sentences handed down to 12 men involved in a brutal attack against members of Ahmadiyah sect in Cikeusik, Banten.

Siobhain, also the chairwoman of the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, said she was shocked at the sentences given Indonesia’s reputation for tolerance.

“These verdicts show a disturbing shift in the country’s commitment to freedom of religion and justice,” she said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Friday.


Eric, who is a member of UK’s House of Lords and the vice-chairman of the UK All Party Parliamentary Group for Human Rights, said the verdicts were “a huge setback for Indonesia and in particular for its justice system”.

“In Pakistan, the attempt by extremists to have the very existence of Ahmadiyah faith made illegal has led to wholesale massacres, assassinations, destruction of mosques, and exclusion from public life. Indonesia must for its own sake avoid going down the same path,” the senior politician said in the same press statement.

The statements add to other criticism by numerous international groups against the ruling made by the Serang District Court in Banten on July 28, sentencing the 12 perpetrators to between three and six months in prison.

The defendants have been accused of playing key roles in the bloody attack, where thousands of people formed a mob and attacked dozens of Ahmadiyah followers, killing three and severely injuring six.

Prosecutors previously demanded five to seven months’ prison for the 12 but, at the same time, have demanded nine months’ imprisonment for Ahmadi follower Deden Sujana, for allegedly inciting hatred.

“The fact that a longer sentence is being sought by prosecutors for an Ahmadi Muslim who defended his property during the attacks is deplorable,” Eric said.

After the Cikeusik attack, Siobhain moved to table an Early Day Motion in UK parliament, calling upon Indonesia to abide by its commitment to freedom of religion, and to repeal its 2008 Joint Ministerial decree against the Ahmadiyya Muslim community.

“That motion has been widely supported with 45 MPs signing up in support,” Siobhain said.

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