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View all search resultsPeace figures reject blasphemy accusations against Jusuf Kalla
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Former vice president Jusuf Kalla (center) shakes hands with Christian delegate from the Malino I peace talks, Rinaldi Damanik (right) on Tuesday during a meeting with figures involved in the Malino I peace process for Poso and Malino II for Maluku in Jakarta. The meeting was held in an effort to ease tensions following a viral video clip of Kalla’s lecture at Gadjah Mada University (UGM), which was accused of blasphemy and led to police reports. (Antara/Fauzan)
F
igures behind the Malino I and Malino II Declaration have defended former vice president Jusuf Kalla, asserting that his recent lecture reflects historical realities of the Poso and Ambon conflicts and does not amount to blasphemy.
The figures, who were directly involved in the peace negotiations that ended sectarian violence in Poso, Central Sulawesi and in Ambon, Maluku, gathered in Jakarta earlier this week for a two-hour public forum addressing the controversy over Kalla’s March 5 lecture at the Gadjah Mada University’s (UGM) mosque in Yogyakarta.
The meeting followed online backlash over Kalla’s remarks on Muslim and Christian groups invoking martyrdom during the conflicts, which led several religious groups to file police reports accusing him of blasphemy for allegedly contradicting Christian and Catholic teachings on violence.
John Ruhulessin, a delegate to the Malino II talks in Maluku, said Kalla’s remarks reflected sociological realities on the ground during the conflicts.
“He was not speaking about religious doctrine, [...] but about how religion, at that time, was used as a tool to justify the violence and killings that occurred,” he said in a livestreamed discussion by Kompas TV on Tuesday. “I think that’s an undeniable fact.”
Read also: Kalla denies blasphemy allegations, says remarks taken out of context
Ruhulessin, a pastor, rejected claims that Kalla had insulted Christianity, adding that the former statesman had directly engaged with communities in Ambon during the conflict and understood its dynamics.
