“People see the FPI as having some immunity, because they can perform their actions without interference from the police.”
Source/Credit: The Jakarta Globe
By Andrea Wijaya | July 3, 2014
Jakarta. Ramadan is a time for Muslims to reinforce their faith and bring the focus back to God. It should be a festive time of forgiveness and spirituality. Yet in Indonesia, Ramadan becomes a time where some have to tread lightly.
The Bogor branch of the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) recently announced its intention to conduct raids on those infringing on the rules of Ramadan.
“We urge everyone to respect one another,” said Muhammad Zaini, head of the FPI’s Bogor operations, on Monday. “If we come across entertainment venues and warteg [food vendors] serving food, we will take action.”
He also said that any activities that were “a disturbance to Muslims” should be halted during the fasting month. His list of demands included that society should monitor hotels serving unmarried couples and that the government shut down “immoral places” operating in Bogor.
‘Sense of fear’
Zaini’s demands come despite police-issued statements claiming that religious vigilantism would not be tolerated.
“There should be no mass organization or groups conducting sweeping or raids of any place,” said Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Rikwanto last Thursday.
Bogor Police Chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Bahtiar Ujang Purnama has also promised firm action against acts of intimidation carried out during Ramadan.
For people working in the dining and entertainment business, guarantees of protection offer little condolence.
“There are probably no more than ten policemen standing guard in Kemang at any given moment… The FPI can amass 100 people in one go,” said Tonie, a restaurateur who has operated his business since 1985.
“Right now, we don’t know what’s going to happen because the FPI are busy with the elections. But those of us who are running restaurants or bars, sometimes we have a sense of fear.”
The fear is a residual effect of raids conducted by the FPI in previous years. Customers were also indirectly affected due to a “risk factor,” choosing not to patronize freestanding businesses without the luxury of mall security to protect them.
“It is different when you are inside a mall — you are protected. [Those] who have the big problems are the ones who stand alone,” said David, also a restaurateur.
David noted that his own business — which is located inside a mall — does not have problems with aggressive attackers. Rather, he said, groups from “Muslim associations” pay visits almost every year, their demands assuaged by offers of food and negotiation.
David also criticized unclear regulations put forth by the government, saying laws often come at the last minute and differ from one location to the next.
“Before the FPI, there was no problem, there were none of these rules. But we respected [people],” Tonie said.
In Tonie’s opinion, the language used in the regulations merely constitutes a discouragement, rather than an outright ban on alcohol. However, he noted that operators were motivated by fear to withhold sales of their own prerogative.
Law and order
Indonesia is often described as home to the world’s largest Muslim population. It is respected by the West as a nation that supposedly embodies democratic principles and Islamic values.
Nevertheless, the separation between religion and state is a line too easily blurred. Whereas the conservative minority is entitled to airing their views, it becomes problematic when the government allows these groups to act with impunity.
FPI vigilantism was commonplace in 2013. An article published by Agence France-Presse last year revealed how the FPI directs members to patrol Jakarta for immoral activities.
Head of the FPI’s Jakarta branch Salim Alatas described his plans for monitoring citizens to the AFP.
“We will send out groups of two to three wearing civilian clothes to spy on sinful activities like the drinking of alcohol taking place around Jakarta during the Ramadan holy month,” he said.
“We will not hesitate to conduct our own raids if we see that the police and authorities are failing to do a good job.”
Politicians and civilians alike have repeatedly spoken out against the group, decrying their numerous acts of intolerance, which range from protesting Lady Gaga out of a concert to terrorizing the Ahmadiyah community. Yet threats of action and even disbandment have yet to come to fruition.
“People see the FPI as having some immunity, because they can perform their actions without interference from the police,” said Irine Hiraswari Gayatri of the Research Center for Politics at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences.
The public, she explained, has been conditioned to expect inaction from the police in the face of hard-line groups. They are deterred from taking legal action against the FPI, in spite of broad opposition.
An increased police budget has not contributed to greater discipline.
“[The police] often come out with statements against the FPI — but it is limited to a statement… the follow-up is unknown to the public,” Irine said.
“Whatever action induces hardship for a great many people… the police must be able to handle and respond to it,” said Mohammad Irvan Olii, a criminologist at the University of Indonesia.
Uncontrolled vigilantism does not constitute a problem of minority rights, he continued. Instead, such actions have the potential to impact the population at large — regardless of role or involvement in the issue.
Last year, the FPI killed a woman as the vigilantes were fleeing residents who fought back against an attempted raid.
Irine had firm words for their actions: “If you have vigilantism taking place for too long, it is a stain to democracy.”
Norms and values
“The ones who have the right of force in the public sphere are the police,” said Islamic scholar and National Islamic University rector Komaruddin Hidayat to the Jakarta Globe in a text message.
“If an Islamic organization feels called to discipline the social [arena], it can better do so by first appealing to the police and local government.”
Taking alternate action that is external to the legal constructs of the government is universally condemned.
Another issue arises when the laws of the state itself might inherently disfavor certain groups.
In Jakarta, 446 entertainment venues are to remain closed for the entire month, while 915 other establishments are subject to restricted operational hours. These limitations are mandated under the 2004 city regulation on tourism.
The reason frequently given for the closure of venues is that Muslims can better concentrate on their fasting activities.
When asked whether such rules are appropriate for a democracy, Mohammad said the concern is still correctable through legal channels.
“Policies made by the government can still be challenged through the same way… There is no need to link it to fear, or to think it isn’t democratic,” he said.
Nurkholis of the National Commisison for Human Rights suggested that laws dealing with normative values must be drafted through dialogue between equals.
“Democracies are born out of values. We often fail to make values of compromise reached in equal standing… In Indonesia, compromise is often achieved, but there is one [party] that dominates,” Nurkholis said.
Civil society, he continued, must step in to correct the balance, should laws tilt in the favor of one group over another.
“The most important thing is that we respect each other,” Nurkholis said. “I think we can do this.”
Read original post here: Indonesia: Ramadan Raises Fears of Vigilante Groups
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