Indonesia: Minister Points to anti-Ahmadiyah Decree as ‘Moderate’ Way

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This most recent attack follows a string of incidents against the minority Muslim group this year — an Ahmadiyah mosque in Bekasi was sealed with members still inside in April by the local government and another mosque in Depok was closed on Tuesday.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | Int'l Desk
Source/Credit: The Jakarta Globe
By Ezra Sihite | May 8, 2013

A government official says people should refer to a five-year-old joint decree to find solutions to the recent spate of violence between hard-line groups and the Ahmadiyah Muslim community.

“One of the most important things [that can solve the conflict] is returning to the agreement as written in SKB [joint ministerial decree] about the duty of regional government heads and their deputies, interfaith religious forum [FKUB] and house of worship building. This is the most moderate way,” Agung Laksono, coordinating minister for people’s welfare, said on Tuesday.

The decree, which was issued by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, Ministry of Home Affairs and the Attorney General’s Office in 2008, banned Ahmadiyah from spreading their beliefs to other people, but legitimized the group as a legal organization.

Agung’s statement came after State Palace meeting about religious intolerance, which was conducted in the wake of the recent attacks on houses, a mosque and facilities on an Ahmadiyah community in Tasikmalaya, West Java, earlier this week.

This most recent attack follows a string of incidents against the minority Muslim group this year — an Ahmadiyah mosque in Bekasi was sealed with members still inside in April by the local government and another mosque in Depok was closed on Tuesday.

Agung said that the decree had also urged people not to take justice in their own hands, in an effort to reduce conflict between hard-line groups and the Ahmadiyah.

“The effort that should be done is to solve the problem to its root. Whenever there is conflict potential, all should refrain themselves, such as the cases in Tasikmalaya, Mataram and Bekasi,” Agung said.

In the SKB, the government said the Ahmadiyah community is a legitimate mass organization and registered with the Ministry of Home Affairs. But if Ahmadiyah people declare themselves as Muslims, they should refer to the mainstream Islamic teachings, it said.



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