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Religious-based discrimination lives on, but more positive initiatives grow: Wahid Foundation
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Wahid Foundation director Yenny Wahid speaks during the launching of #PositionOfStrenght in cooperation with Twitter Indonesia. (Antara/Arindra Meodia)
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eligious freedom watchdog Wahid Foundation has said there have been growing efforts conducted by state and non-state actors to promote freedom of religion in Indonesia although it also records rampant discrimination in the country.
The group says 254 positive incidents that fostered religious harmony occurred throughout last year, 94 of which were initiated by civilians while the remaining were conducted by state actors, including the police and regional administrators.
An example of good practices recorded by the Wahid Foundation was when Muslims and Christians in Tual, Maluku, worked together to renovate Al-Huriyah, a local mosque.
Other positive events include an incident in Semarang, Central Java, where the local police guarded members of a Shia community, which had been frequently labelled as heresy, and guaranteed their safety when the community members held a prayer meeting to celebrate the Islamic New Year despite protests from local communities, who were mostly Sunni followers.
Wahid Foundation director Yenny Zannuba Wahid cited the culture of silaturahmi (communal togetherness) as a factor that could further promote religious harmony in the country.
“We need to further foster silaturahmi because it melts barriers among different groups,” she said during a luncheon of the organization’s annual report on freedom of religion.
Although more positive actions were seen throughout the archipelago, the Wahid Foundation also found discrimination against minority faith groups was also on the rise throughout 2016. It recorded 313 violations, most of which were legal abuse. (ebf)
