Indonesia: Displaced NTB Ahmadis to get ID cards, but with no religious preference

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The officials’ visit was made following a recommendation made by the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) that the Ahmadis were in dire need of ID cards in order to get access to the government’s assistance programs.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | Int'l Desk
Source/Credit: The Jakarta Post
By Panca Nugraha | July 26 2013

After spending years living in Wisma Transito displacement camp without ID cards, dozens of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) Ahmadis may finally be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel after a group of local officials visited them and promised they would soon be given the cards.

However, the ID cards would say nothing of the Ahmadis’ religion.

“A group of officials led by Sautma Sihombing from the Home Ministry has stated they want to issue ID cards for us, but with one condition that the religion column is left empty,” Ahmadiyah displacement coordinator Syahidin said on Friday.

He said according to Sautma, the Ahmadis would be treated like people who had no religious preferences.

“I consider myself a Muslim but why they don’t want to put our religious preference on our ID cards?” he said.

The officials’ visit was made following a recommendation made by the National Commission of Human Rights (Komnas HAM) that the Ahmadis were in dire need of ID cards in order to get access to the government’s assistance programs, like the cash aid program and also to get birth certificates for their children.

Local Ahmadiyah leader Nasirudin also criticized the Home Ministry officials’ plan to put no information about religion on the Ahmadis’ ID cards. He said a different policy had been applied to the Ahmadis who lived in South Sulawesi, who still had “Islam” written on their ID cards.

“Why the different treatment?” he questioned.

To date, as many as 117 Ahmadis, comprised of 30 households, still live at Wisma Transito in Mataram after a group of hard-liners vandalized their village seven years ago. (dic)



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