F

ollowing an alleged act of persecution by a group claiming to be members of hard-line Muslim organization Islam Defenders Front (FPI) toward PMA, a 15-year-old boy who posted a Facebook message allegedly insulting FPI leader and firebrand cleric Rizieq Shihab, the government and activists have declared their support for PMA and have urged the Jakarta Police to proceed with the case.

The case came into the spotlight on Thursday when a video that went viral on the internet showed PMA being intimidated and harassed by a group of men.

The men accused him of having mocked Rizieq through his Facebook account and asked PMA to sign a statement of apology for slandering Rizieq.

One of the men told the teenager that Rizieq, who was recently named a suspect in a pornography case, was respected by the whole Muslim community. Another man is later seen slapping the boy’s mouth two times.

The East Jakarta Police later arrested two men in the video. They are identified only by the initials of AM, 22, and M. Both suspects are residents of Cipinang Muara, East Jakarta, where the incident took place. The police have confirmed AN to be a member of the FPI.

According to Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Argo Yuwono, PMA did not write the Facebook status himself but copied it from another source.

“After he published the copied words, someone on Facebook messaged him about his status and then asked him to meet in person,” said Argo.

“Turns out it was a set-up to frame PMA. He was later herded into a nearby community unit office and the rest went as recorded on the video.”

Argo said AM and M would be charged with Article 80 of Law No. 35/2014 regarding child protection, which carries a maximum prison sentence of three years and six months. Besides the two suspects, the Jakarta Police have also questioned five witnesses who were present at the site of the incident.

Following the incident, PMA has received assistance from several institutions, including the Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection Ministry, GP Ansor, the young wing of Indonesia’s largest Muslim organization the Nahdlatul Ulama, and the Indonesian Child Protection Commission (KPAI).

Neneng Heryani from the ministry’s social protection house for children said the ministry had moved PMA, his mother and his six younger siblings to a safe house.

“We are going to check on his physical and mental health and also help him out of his trauma,” said Neneng. “Most importantly, we will ensure that PMA and his siblings will be able to attend school as usual.”

KPAI commissioner Erlinda Iswanto said that mass persecution, especially against underage children, could not be justified in any way.

“What I see is a form of arrogance shown by certain members of an organization to someone who just wanted to voice his opinion,” she said.

Erlinda said the KPAI would represent PMA during any necessary legal procedures as she had heard about certain parties planning to report PMA to the police for the latter’s Facebook status.

“We appreciate the Jakarta Police’s efforts to safeguard the boy after the incident. We will discuss with the police which articles we should charge his persecutors with,” she said.

Meanwhile, GP Ansor’s Jakarta branch secretary Dendy Zuhairil said his organization reported the video to the Jakarta Police as soon as they got hold of it.

“We will defend PMA as he undergoes legal procedures with the police,” said Dendy. “We would like to emphasize that Indonesia is a lawful country and therefore, if certain groups are offended by something, they should not persecute anyone.” (dea)