The Young Muslims Challenging Islam’s Status Quo

THE NEW YORK TIMES: A conservative religious movement, spread through social media, has taken hold among Indonesian youth. The government wants to curb its influence.

A boy band belted out songs about loving the Prophet Muhammad. A young woman wearing a full-face veil was moved to tears by the faith of new converts. Later, the crowd applauded as a 15-year-old girl converted to Islam before their eyes. Many posted selfies on social media, delighting in their shared faith.

The scene was an annual festival in Padang, part of a new conservative Islamic movement in Indonesia known as Hijrah that is attracting millions of believers, many of them young and drawn by celebrity preachers on Instagram.

Islamic conservatism has been on the rise in Indonesia for years, even as the government has long tried to maintain a secular, religiously diverse society. The current iteration in the Hijrah movement is distinct in its use of social media to spread the word, and in its appeal to the young. And its popularity is generating concern among government and religious officials, who fear it could erode a more moderate brand of Islam. » | Sui-Lee Wee | Wednesday, April 12, 2023

In Sweeping Legal Overhaul, Indonesia Outlaws Sex Outside Marriage

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Parliament also approved a law that criminalizes criticism of the government, delivering a blow to the country’s progressive reputation.

A protest outside the Indonesian Parliament, in Jakarta, before lawmakers overhauled the criminal code on Monday. | Willy Kurniawan/Reuters
Indonesia has long been known as a widely tolerant nation at the forefront of establishing democratic reforms throughout Southeast Asia. That progressive reputation took a hit on Tuesday when Parliament cleared a sweeping overhaul of the country’s criminal code.

According to the new rules, sex outside of marriage is now illegal in Indonesia, as is defamation of the president. The overhaul also sharply expanded laws against blasphemy in the world’s largest Muslim-majority country. Opponents said the rules posed significant risks to religious minorities by outlawing extramarital sex and tacitly targeting critics of Islam. Extramarital sex criminalization also targets the L.G.B.T. community, as gay marriage is illegal in Indonesia. The new laws could also curtail freedom of expression and assembly.

The new laws are almost certain to revive a debate around democratic backsliding in the nation of 276 million. After the fall of the Indonesian dictator Suharto in 1998, the country had prided itself as a thriving democracy. Most Indonesians held fairly relaxed views about homosexuality, which was never officially banned.

But in recent years, conservative Islam has gained ground in the country, and now some fear its influence is growing, even as its ranks remain a minority in Parliament. In the lead-up to the next presidential election in 2024, few officials appear willing to upset the religious right, which helped paved the way for Tuesday’s overhaul of the criminal code.

“It is a very significant encroachment on rights and liberties in Indonesia,” said Tim Lindsey, director of the Center for Indonesian Law, Islam and Society at the University of Melbourne. Critics warned that the new rules, which also apply to foreigners, will make Indonesia less appealing to investors, tourists and students.

Muhamad Isnur, chairman of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation, said the laws run “contrary to international human rights norms. We are in a new paradigm,” he said. » | Sui-Lee Wee | Tuesday, December 6, 2022

Related video.

Indonesia Passes Law Banning Sex Outside Marriage – BBC News

Dec 6, 2022 | Indonesia’s parliament has approved a new criminal code that bans anyone in the country having sex outside marriage, including foreigners. Under the new laws unmarried couples can be jailed for up to a year for having sex. They are also banned from living together - an act for which people could be jailed for up to six months. The new laws won't come into effect for another three years, and it's expected there will be court challenges. Rights groups say this disproportionately affects women, LGBT people and ethnic minorities in the country.

Making bonking outside of marriage illegal (and a criminal offence) is bonkers! Evil and bonkers! That's Shari'ah law for you! – © Mark Alexander

Poverty, Disease, Customs: Why So Many Indonesian Children Die of Covid

The grave of Alesha Kimi Pramudita, a 22-month-old who died after being infected with the coronavirus in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in July. Credit...Ulet Ifansasti for The New York Times
THE NEW YORK TIMES: BULUS WETAN, Indonesia — When Debiyantoro, a hotel repairman, first lost his sense of taste, he wondered briefly if it might be Covid-19, but he quickly dismissed the idea. Having the disease would mean not being able to make a living.

Now he blames his reluctance to get tested for the death of his 22-month-old daughter, Alesha Kimi Pramudita. All 10 members of their crowded household suffered Covid-like symptoms but none were tested until Kimi went for an unrelated checkup. Hospitalized immediately, she died a day later.

“Although I thought it might have been Covid, I was afraid I wouldn’t be allowed to work, which means I couldn’t have supported my family,” Mr. Debiyantoro, who like many Indonesians uses one name, said as he tried to hold back tears. “But now I am filled with remorse that I lost my daughter.”

Across Indonesia, children have fallen victim to Covid in alarming numbers, with a striking increase since June, when the Delta variant began taking hold. The pandemic has killed at least 1,245 Indonesian children and the biggest recent jump has been among those under age 1, said Dr. Aman Bhakti Pulungan, head of the Indonesian Pediatric Society.

Researchers point to many reasons children would be more likely to die in developing countries, but many of those factors boil down to a single one: poverty. » | Dera Menra Sijabat, Richard C. Paddock and Muktita Suhartono | Saturday, August 14, 2021

Indonesia: Diversity Under Threat | DW Documentary

May 27, 2020 • Indonesia is considered a model state for diversity and tolerance, but there are increasing indications that Islamists are gaining more influence in the most populous Muslim country in the world.

Far more Muslims live in Indonesia than in the Middle East. The archipelago is made up of more than 17,000 islands and home to 270 million people.

Following the end of the brutal Suharto dictatorship in 1998, Indonesia became a model for a democratic Muslim majority state. But in recent years, Islamist groups have gained influence.

The report begins in Aceh. It is only here, in the northernmost province of the island of Sumatra, that a rigid interpretation of Islamic Sharia law applies - including public floggings. The reasons for the humiliating punishments are manifold: sex before or outside marriage, alcohol consumption or homosexuality.

A growing tendency towards a more conservative interpretation of Islam is also noticeable in other parts of secular Indonesia. More women are wearing headscarves in public places. The niqab, the face veil, is becoming increasingly popular. Members of minority groups feel marginalized.

"Unfortunately, Indonesia is not immune to the worldwide increase in intolerance”, says politician Yenny Wahid.

The daughter of the first elected president after the Suharto dictatorship stands for cosmopolitanism and represents a liberal view of Islam. She, too, has observed a slow Islamization of her homeland and the tendency of politicians to make concessions to radical and populist groups.

Student activists blame the corruption of the ruling class for growing radicalism and undermining diversity.

The documentary "Indonesia - Diversity Under Threat" asks whether the country can preserve its religious tolerance.


Early in this excellent documentary, the narrator stated that Islam is compatible with democracy. It is not! If you hear anyone making such a statement, especially a politician, call him/her out! They are displaying their ignorance of both democracy and Islam! For a democracy to exist, it is absolutely essential that there be separation of Church and State. The temporal must be separated from the spiritual. Without this separation, democracy cannot exist, still less thrive.

The politically-correct try and hide the fact that there are many fundamental differences between Islam and Christianity. But there are many great differences! In Islam, the temporal and the spiritual are one organic whole – they are intertwined. There is no separation at all. You might think that this is a moot point; it is not! That there be a separation of Church or religious affairs and State or secular affairs is the sine qua non of democracy. Without that separation, democracy cannot survive.

I wrote the following essay on this subject many years ago. In 2007, to be precise. When I posted it, it went all around the world. What I wrote then applies both to democracy and to Islam today, as well, of course. The nature of Islam has not changed, nor has the nature of a true democracy.

By the way, that doesn’t make Islam bad and democracy good. It just makes the two systems different.

I hope you enjoy the read. – © Mark

Islam: The Enemy of Democracy and Freedom »

Indonesia: Suicide Bombers Attack Church after Palm Sunday Mass | DW News

At least 20 people have been injured in a suicide bombing outside a Catholic cathedral in the Indonesian city of Makassar. Authorities say two bombers were killed in the attack. Churches have been targeted in Indonesia in the past by Islamic extremists. Pope Francis said he would pray for the victims, who were attending Palm Sunday Mass.

The beginning of Easter week is a holy time for Christians. But in Makassar the celebrations were marred by violence. As worshippers were leaving Sunday Mass, two suspected suicide bombers set off explosions outside the Indonesian city's main Catholic cathedral. One of them was said to be a woman.

President Joko Widodo called for calm, saying his government would ensure people of all faiths can worship without fear. Places of worship in Indonesia have been targeted before. Police are investigating if this attack is linked to religious extremism.

The majority Muslim country has a history of Islamist attacks. Indonesia has been on high alert in recent months following the arrest of the prominent leader of an extremist group. Counterterrorism squads have arrested dozens of suspects across the country, including in Makassar.

Indonesia: Diversity under Threat | DW Documentary

Indonesia is considered a model state for diversity and tolerance, but there are increasing indications that Islamists are gaining more influence in the most populous Muslim country in the world.

Far more Muslims live in Indonesia than in the Middle East. The archipelago is made up of more than 17,000 islands and home to 270 million people.

Following the end of the brutal Suharto dictatorship in 1998, Indonesia became a model for a democratic Muslim majority state. But in recent years, Islamist groups have gained influence.

The report begins in Aceh. It is only here, in the northernmost province of the island of Sumatra, that a rigid interpretation of Islamic Sharia law applies - including public floggings. The reasons for the humiliating punishments are manifold: sex before or outside marriage, alcohol consumption or homosexuality.

A growing tendency towards a more conservative interpretation of Islam is also noticeable in other parts of secular Indonesia. More women are wearing headscarves in public places. The niqab, the face veil, is becoming increasingly popular. Members of minority groups feel marginalized.

"Unfortunately, Indonesia is not immune to the worldwide increase in intolerance”, says politician Yenny Wahid.

The daughter of the first elected president after the Suharto dictatorship stands for cosmopolitanism and represents a liberal view of Islam. She, too, has observed a slow Islamization of her homeland and the tendency of politicians to make concessions to radical and populist groups.

Student activists blame the corruption of the ruling class for growing radicalism and undermining diversity.

The documentary "Indonesia - Diversity Under Threat" asks whether the country can preserve its religious tolerance.

Deadly Earthquake Hits Indonesia's Sulawesi Island | DW News

An earthquake struck Indonesia's Sulawesi island early on Friday morning, leaving at least 34 people dead and injuring over 600 others. The head of the local disaster mitigation agency Ali Rahman told AFP that "the latest information we have is that 26 people are dead in Mamuju city." The national disaster agency said that a further eight people had died to the south of the city. Many buildings were damaged. Two hospitals and the building that houses the provincial government offices collapsed, said Muhammad Idris, secretary to the governor on national television. A large number of people are trapped under the rubble, officials said. The epicenter of the 6.2 magnitude quake was 6 kilometers (3.73 miles) northeast of Majene city and measured at a depth of 18 kilometers. Thousands of people left their homes when the quake hit. They were evacuated to temporary shelters.

Are New Laws an Assault on Human Rights in Indonesia? | Inside Story

Extra-marital relations outlawed in Indonesia; and jail sentences for insulting the president. These are some of the controversial proposals causing an outcry in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, which are considered disastrous by rights groups.

Thousands of students vented their anger. Coming under pressure, President Joko Widodo postponed the vote on changes to the draft criminal code, but Indonesians still fear it could be passed by parliament.

They're also angry over the passing of another law that weakens Indonesia's anti-corruption organization. The protests have been dismissed by the Indonesian government. So, can the outrage stop the government's plans?

Presenter: Mohammed Jamjoom | Guests: Greg Barton, expert on terrorism at Deakin University: Calvin Dark, former Indonesian Government Campaign Adviser; Damien Kings, conflict resolution specialist

Is ISIL Expanding in Southeast Asia? | Inside Story

Indonesia's suffered a number of attacks in recent years. It has long struggled with rebel groups, particularly al-Qaeda affiliated Jemaah Islamiyah, and now ISIL, which has been recruiting in the region.

ISIL claimed responsibility for Sunday's attacks on three churches. Police say the suicide bombings were carried out by one family, including two children aged 9 and 12.

At least 13 people died and more than 40 wounded. ISIL has lost territory in Syria and Iraq, but it's been active in other countries. Can the group be stopped?

Presenter: Mohammed Jamjoom | Guests Rahima Abdulrahim - Executive director of the Habibie Center; Olivier Guitta - Managing Director of GlobalStrat consultancy firm; Greg Fealy - author of " Voices of Islam in Southeast Asia: A Contemporary Sourcebook

Guardian Investigation of Ivanka Trump Factory in Indonesia Reveals Worker Abuse, Deplorably Low Pay

A new investigation by the Guardian has revealed workplace abuse, grueling production targets and deplorably low pay at an Indonesian factory that makes clothing for Ivanka Trump’s clothing label. Many of the female workers at the factory in West Java say the pay is so low, they live in constant debt and can’t afford to live with their own children. In June, Democracy Now! spoke with the journalist who broke the story, Krithika Varagur, when she joined us from Indonesia to describe what she uncovered.

Two Men in Indonesia Endure Public Flogging for Gay Sex

THE TELEGRAPH: Two men in Indonesia's Aceh province were publicly caned dozens of times on Tuesday for consensual gay sex, a punishment that intensifies an anti-gay backlash in the world's most populous Muslim country and which rights advocates denounced as "medieval torture."

More than a thousand people packed the courtyard of a mosque to witness the caning, which was the first time that Aceh, the only province in Indonesia to practice Shariah law, has caned people for homosexuality.

The crowd shouted insults and cheered as the men, aged 20 and 23, were whipped across the back and winced with pain. Many in the crush of spectators filmed the caning with mobile phones as a team of five robed and hooded enforcers took turns inflicting the punishment, relieving one another after every 20 strokes for one of the men and 40 for the other.

Sarojini Mutia Irfan, a female university student who witnessed the caning, said it was a necessary deterrent. » | Associated Press | Tuesday, May 23, 2017

What Does Ahok's Conviction for Blasphemy Mean for Indonesia? – Inside Story

Interfaith Leaders to Tour Europe, US to Introduce Indonesia’s Moderate Islam

THE JAKARTA POST: Indonesian interfaith leaders are set to visit several countries across Europe and the United States to introduce values of tolerance among Islamic religious followers in the country.

As a country of multi-ethnic groups and religions, Indonesia has long been considered a good example for other countries in building harmony among religious followers.

“The delegates will speak about the religious concord in Indonesia, how moderate Islam plays a crucial role in the country and how Indonesian nationalism can have tolerant and inclusive religious followers as its pillars,” said Leimena Institute founder, Jacob Tobing, said as quoted by kompas.com after he met with Vice President Jusuf Kalla at the Vice Presidential Office in Jakarta on Friday. » | News Desk | The Jakarta Post | Jakarta | Saturday, March 18, 2017

Saudi Arabia Is Redefining Islam for the World's Largest Muslim Nation »

Saudi Arabia Is Redefining Islam for the World's Largest Muslim Nation

THE ATLANTIC: King Salman's historic visit to Indonesia is the culmination of a long campaign for influence.

When Saudi Arabia’s King Salman landed in Indonesia on Wednesday, he became the first Saudi monarch to visit the world’s largest Muslim-majority country since 1970. Officials in Jakarta had hoped the visit would help them strengthen business ties and secure $25 billion in resource investments. That’s largely been a bust—as of Thursday, the kingdom has agreed to just one new deal, for a relatively paltry $1 billion.

But Saudi Arabia has, for decades, been making investments of a different sort—those aimed at influencing Indonesian culture and religion. The king’s current visit is the apex of that methodical campaign, and “has the potential to accelerate the expansion of Saudi Arabia’s cultural resources in Indonesia,” according to Chris Chaplin, a researcher at the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asia. “In fact, given the size of his entourage, I wouldn’t be surprised if there will be a flurry of networking activity amongst Indonesian alumni of Saudi universities.”

Since 1980, Saudi Arabia has devoted millions of dollars to exporting its strict brand of Islam, Salafism, to historically tolerant and diverse Indonesia. It has built more than 150 mosques (albeit in a country that has about 800,000), a huge free university in Jakarta, and several Arabic language institutes; supplied more than 100 boarding schools with books and teachers (albeit in a country estimated to have between 13,000 and 30,000 boarding schools); brought in preachers and teachers; and disbursed thousands of scholarships for graduate study in Saudi Arabia. All this adds up to a deep network of Saudi influence. » | Krithika Varagur | Thursday, March 2, 2017

Is Indonesia a Tolerant Country? – Inside Story

Local elections in Indonesia are usually just that - local.

Saudi Arabia Quietly Spreads Its Brand of Puritanical Islam in Indonesia

VOICE OF AMERICA: JAKARTA — When Ulil Abshar-Abdalla was a teenager in Pati, Central Java, he placed first in an Arabic class held at his local madrasa. The prize was six months of tuition at the Institute for the Study of Islam and Arabic (LIPIA), a Jakarta university founded and funded by the Saudi Arabian government. At the end of six months, LIPIA offered him another six. He stayed on.

After that, it offered him four more years of free tuition to obtain a bachelor’s degree in Islamic law, or shariah. He accepted that too. In 1993, after five years at LIPIA, he was offered a scholarship to continue his studies in Riyadh. He finally said no. » | Krithika Varagur | Tuesday, January 17, 2017

Inside Story - Is the Law against Blasphemy in Indonesia Being Misused?

The Christian governor of Jakarta is on trial for insulting Islam

Hard-Line Strain of Islam Gains Ground in Indonesia, World’s Largest Muslim Country

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Rally against Christian governor of Jakarta draws estimated 100,000 people

JAKARTA, Indonesia—The biggest street protest in years shook this sprawling capital on Friday in a stark display of the more conservative, militant strain of Islam taking hold in the world’s largest Muslim country.

Police said an estimated 100,000 people turned out for a rally called by hard-line Muslim groups against the capital’s Christian governor, whom they accuse of having committed blasphemy. » | Ben Otto and Anita Rachman | Friday, November 4, 2016

Indonesia Proposes Alcohol Ban in Bali

THE TELEGRAPH: The party could soon be over in one of the world’s most beer-fuelled tourism spots, the Indonesian island of Bali, under a new law that would ban the drinking of alcohol.

The proposed bill to outlaw the production, sale and consumption of alcohol across the whole of Indonesia carries a prison sentence of up to ten years for violators. If passed, it would crush the tourism sector, industry chiefs have warned.

“No matter how beautiful the country is, if they can’t find alcohol, they [tourists] won’t want to come here,” said Hariyadi Sukamdani, the head of Indonesia's Hotel and Restaurant Association.

A ban would particularly damage the resort of Bali, one of Indonesia’s 34 provinces. » | Nicola Smith | Sunday, September 11, 2016