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Banning HTI undemocratic
Under democracy, the HTI should not be dissolved by an oppressive policy, but by ideological contestation.
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Female members of Islamic organization Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) stage a rally to promote the establishment of an Islamic caliphate in Malang, East Java. (Kompas.com/File)
The government’s plan to ban Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI) is counterproductive to democratic consolidation.
First, there are no reasonable grounds to disband the HTI except that it propagates the idea of a khilafah (Islamic state). Propagating ideas, as long as it is done through lawful ways, is part of freedom of speech and freedom of expression, which are guaranteed by the Constitution.
Second, there is no evidence that the HTI has resorted to violent and unconstitutional measures in disbursing its ideology. If a vigilante group like the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) is allowed to operate, why should a more peaceful organization like the HTI be banned?
Third, there are a number of examples of how excluding Islamist groups from politics radicalizes them. Take the Islamic Salvation Front in Algeria during the 1990s and the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt during the era of Gamal Abdel-Nasser in the 1950s.
