Center for Religious and Cross-cultural StudiesGraduate School, Universitas Gadjah Mada
PERSPECTIVESon Religious Life in Indonesia
Gadjah Mada Graduate Building, III Floor, Jl. Teknika Utara, Pogung, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55281: [email protected] (62-274-544976), : [email protected] (62-274-562570)CRCS ICRS
http://crcs.ugm.ac.id, http://icrs.ugm.ac.id
Dakwahtainment and Its Discontent ¹By DickySofjan, Ph.D.
My interest in this
topic stemmed from years
of discomfort watching
numerous dakwah (Islamic
propagation) programs
being run every single day
on virtually all television
channels. Here, religion or
r e l i g i o u s t e a c h i n g s ,
represented by the notion
of dakwah is combined with
entertainment, hence the
term dakwahtainment. At its
most superficial level, it
suggested to me some sort
of an Islamic resurgence or
at the very least a new type of religious zeal among the burgeoning Indonesian middle class. At
best, it signaled the incursion of religion and spirituality in what can otherwise be regarded as an
exceedingly secular and ferocious Capitalistic media industry. However, taking a closer look at
the phenomenon, I have come to realize that the much hyped form of Islamic propagation is
pregnant with problems associated with fundamental principles of religious norms and ethics.
Simultaneous with the arrival of dakwahtainment was the pervasive and invasive
“infotainment” programs broadcasted in virtually all television stations. These programs
mostly valorize and glamorize the already glamorous culture of celebrity among the artists and
public figures, including prominent ustads (religious teachers). Arising out of the
democratization movement at the turn of the century and the 1999 media liberalization laws,
dakwahtainment and infotainment programs have arguably emerged as a counterweight to the
moribund, dreary state-sponsored dakwah programs rampant during the heydays of Suharto's
New Order regime. Previously, such programs employed government-sanctioned ustads, who
were bent on safeguarding the status quo while keeping Islamic radicalism at bay.
Dakwahtainment is therefore defined here as a concept amalgamating Islamic
propagation and the innumerable forms of entertainment programs broadcast through the
medium of television, allowing millions of home viewers to watch and receive their messages. In
its application, the notion of dakwahtainment is guided by a strict principle used by media
executives, producers and creative teams, who often operationalize it in terms of tuntunan
(spiritual guidance) and tontonan (entertainment viewing). Today, dakwahtainment conjures up
the image of handsome, photogenic, seemingly pious and wealthy celebrity ustads, who are
typically proficient in the use of Bahasa Gaul or the 'socialization' language of the young.
Dakwahtainment thus denotes the proliferation and amplification of popular Islam, wherein
their fans and followers participate through the medium of television, and transform
themselves into a jama'ah (religious congregation). It is through television that these celebrity
ustads gain their credibility and authority, challenging the conventional power and charismatic
appeal of the kiyais (Javanese, religious scholar-teachers), whose base have been largely
Volume 1, April 2013
Dear Readers,
Welcome to the first printed edition of our
Perspective Newsletter 2013. This newsletter is
jointly issued by the Center for Religious and
Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS) of Universitas
Gadjah Mada and Indonesian Consortium for
Religious Studies (ICRS). Each edition will
consist of one main article on religious issue in
Indonesia and some news of our activities.
In this volume we highlight the issue of
dakwahtainment-Islamic propagation combined
with entertainment- which color Indonesian
television along with the emergence of Islam in
the society after the Reformasi Era. The news
contents include coverages of the role of
CRCS's d irec tor, in the Indones ian
Constitutional Court as an expert witness for
the judicial review of the Blasphemy Law, the
succes of civic pluralism school that brigdes the
gap between activist and academic in pluralism
advocacies i, news about ICRS's second open
dissertation defence and ICRS' international
conference on Shia in Southeast Asia. As you
will find in this volume, in every edition we will
provide reports from of our Wednesday
Forum.
This newsletter will be available every two
month both printed and in pdf format
a c c e s s i b l e i n o u r w e b s i t e
w w w. c r c s . u g m . a c . i d / n e w s l e t t e r a n d
www.icrs.ugm.ac.id.
We hope that this newsletter helps widen
our understanding on religious issues in
Indonesia. We hope you enjoy reading it and
we welcome your feedback.
Thank you.
Inside This Issue
1. Dakwahtainment and its Discontents. ------ 01 3. Ph.D Open Defense: Christianity and
Islam in search for peace in Southern Philippines. ----- 03
2. Civic Pluralism School: Building Activist Academic Synergy in Research-Base Advocacy. ------ 04
4. Conference: The Presence of Shia and its Trajectory in Southeast Asia. ----- 05
6. Pentecostal Movement in Indonesia:The Role of Women and the Mobility of Church Members. ------ 06
7.. ------ 07
8. “The Blasphemy Law is Blind of Case Diversity “Zainal Abidin Bagir delivered his testimony at the Judicial Review of the BlasphemyLaw. ------ 08
Rel ig ion And The Publ i c Sphere
In Indonesia Revisited
¹ Some portions of this article were derived from a paper the author presented entitled “Dakwahtainment and Discontent: Ethical
Considerations in Islamic Televangelism” in the International Conference on Akhlaak-e vaAadian (Ethics and Religions) in Qum, Iran, on
February 27-28, 2013. The conference was convened by the Ma'arij Research Institution of Divine Sciences of Isra International Divine Sciences
Foundation based in Qum.
01
02
(Islamic popular literature), springing a new lucrative cottage
industry for the old and new Indonesian publishers, vying for the
huge and insatiable body of the Indonesian Muslim consumers.
These works include Perempuan Berkalung Sorban (Woman with a
Turban) in 2001; Ayat-Ayat Cinta (The Love Verses) in 2004, Laskar
Pelangi (Rainbow Troops) in 2005, and the more recent publication of
Negeri Lima Menara (The Land of Five Towers) in 2009. All the said
novels were later made into movies, prompting a 'comeback' of
Indonesian cinema, which experienced near-collapse due to the
New Order government's restrictions and state-centralized
management of culture.
Religion and Television
For some television might be seen as a means to deliver
religious teachings. However, the relationhsip between television
and media is more complex than such a one direction influnce. In his
book entitled Television Culture: Popular Pleasures and Politics (1987),
John Fiske argues that television is a “cultural agent”, which serves
as “a provoker and circulator of meanings” and concerns
“pleasures.” Fiske contends that television is “made to appear the
result of natural rather than cultural processes, it is taken away from
the realm of history and culture and moved towards that of
universal truth … [In short,] television produces 'reality' rather than
reflects it” (1987: 21). Here, religion is mediated by cultural
meanings that are projected onto the screen and controlled by
gatekeepers, who serve as agents of the “dominant ideology.”
Currently, many programs suggest almost perfect
e x a m p l e s o f f u n c t i o n a l
util ization of religion in
Indonesian television. They
include religiously-oriented
films, movies, sinetrons (literally,
electronic cinemas)—akin to
soap operas else where, docu-
dramas, reality and game shows
and other genres that blatantly
propagate religion, namely
Is lam, in Indonesia . For
example, films and sinetrons
take the form of various
programs suggestive of the
nature, orientation and content of such programs: Rahasia Ilahi
(Divine Secrets), Hidayah (Divine Guidance), Astagfirullah (Taking
Refuge from Allah), Takdir Ilahi (Divine Destiny), Khadijah (name of
the Prophet Muhammad's wife), Cinta Fitri (Pure Love), Tukang
Bubur Naik Haji (Porridge Seller Goes on a Pilgrimage), Ustad Foto
Copy (Xeroxed Religious Teacher), etc. In terms of themes, they
frequently run along the lines of submission or resignation to God's
will, patience and grace under pressure, repentance and salvation
from religiously unlawful ways of living, and dilemmas in Islamic-
sanctioned love and marriages. One noticeable element distinctively
similar in these sinetrons is the over-reliance of display on the latest
fashionable Islamic garbs, apparels and accessories donned by the
performing actors and actresses.
Within the mystic docu-dramas, the audience is offered
programs that usually take the viewers for an excursion into the
world of the unseen. They include programs entitled Dunia Ghaib
(The World of the Unseen), Dunia Lain (The Other World) and the
most dramatic of all, the Pemburu Hantu (Ghost Busters). The
program involve a pious ustad that facilitates the process of
intercession with the spirits, which would subsequently be followed
by a dialog between a medium—a person possessed by the
spirits—and the host or the ustad him self. In some cases it also
acrobatic and performative martial arts. Typically, the scenario
concerns the existence of roh-roh pengganggu (literally, disturbing
spirits) that inhabit a house, where the owners or residents had
centered in and around the Pesantrens or traditional Islamic
boarding schools.
It can be argued that the phenomenon of dakwahtinment
originated from the enterprise that Abdullah Gymnastiar, otherwise
locally known as Aa Gym, developed through his Manajemen Qalbu
(Management of the Heart) or MQ Corporation. Through his skillful
use of modest language and unassuming, non-patronizing style of
preaching, he had gained much support and quickly developed a
legion of followers across the archipelago. His main message was
essentially based on neo-Sufistic notions found in many spiritual
movements around the world, which attempt to re-contextualize
religiosity and spirituality in the face of modernity perceived to be
predisposed to plunging humanity into hedonism, materialism,
consumerism and nihilism. Howell (2008) argues that such
“electronically-mediated mass predication programs” effectively
promote and project “intense spiritual intimacy with God, which
Muslims seek through Sufi devotions.” It is in this context that Aa
Gym offered dakwahtainment through his MQTV station, and was
able to break the mold by presenting “dakwah content that is
entertaining” and refreshing through a combined functional
utilization of the passivist Sufi tradition and the profit hungry media
industry.
The rise of Aa Gym in the late 1990s evidently marked a
major beginning of the commoditization of Islam in Indonesia,
which concomitantly combined the expansion of the post-
authoritarian, centralized market with the spiritual needs of the
modern sophisticated society eager to sought new meanings of life.
It also came at a time when the
push for democratization and
d e c e n t r a l i z a t i o n b e c a m e
inevitable, and the government
h a d t o s u c c u m b t o t h e
liberalization agenda, especially
in the area of the media, wherein
the state no longer became the
foremost primary monopolizer
of information in the country.
This new Law No.40/1999 on the
media effectively annulled the
long-held policy of censorship
and media licensing, rendering
the government as mere facilitator to ensure a healthy exchange of
information and communication. Unfortunately, Aa Gym's sudden
rise met with an unexpected and abrupt fall from grace, rapidly
downgrading his celebrity status. His drastic fall came in 2006 when
he self-assuredly decided to take up a second wife, a widow with
three children, raising the Sword of Damocles against the ibu-ibu
(literally, 'mothers') who hold considerable power in Indonesia and
previously looked up to him as an 'alim (wise, pious person) and a
wife-loving husband.
As such, the precipitation of dakwahtainment programs can
also be analyzed through the'return' of the Indonesian popular
culture, which experienced decades of deliberate state suppression
intended to stifle creativity in the name of political stability and
economic development. Previously, preachers and scholars
engaging in Islamic dakwah programs on television were
handpicked by the regime. One well-known television preacher, for
instance, Qasim Nurseha, was an army chaplain, whose regular
morning preaching was highly popular. Alternatively, religious
discussions on TVRI—the state-owned television station—would
invite such scholars from MUI (Indonesian Council of Religious
Scholars) to deliver legal opinions, and propagandize the state's
stance on virtually all matters on Islam,which again was based on its
own set of logic and interpretation.
The reform era had thus inadvertently provided a major
thrust in the so-called Sastra Wangi (adult novels) and Sastra Islam
The precipitiationof dakwahtainment programs
can also be analyzed through the 'return' of the
Indonesian popular culture, which experienced
decades of deliberate state suppression intended
to stiffl creativity in the name of political
stability and economic development
encountered strange, unexplained phenomena such as lost items
and mysteriously moving objects. Eventually Pemburu Hantu
received numerous criticisms from the public and monitoring
agencies, which led to its demise.
Discontentment toward Dakwahtainment
Criticism toward dakwahtainment programs in Indonesia is
mainly directed to the way they explicitly and deliberately deploy
props, scripts and setups based on comedies of errors to support
Islamic propagation. For instance, many of the celebrity preachers
such as Jeffry al-Buchory (a.k.a. “Uje”), Yusuf Mansyur and Mamah
Dedeh all engage comedians as their hosts or counterparts in their
programs. Such an industrial tactic is supposedly to provide light
entertainment to the usually all-too-serious Islamic dakwah
messages, effectively giving the impression that religion is fun, cool,
trendy and easily digestible, intellectually speaking. This
phenomenon had thus transformed what used to be serious-minded
dakwah to religious preaching and gathering filled with routine
anecdotes and jokes combined with the utilization of an array of
performative skills displayed by the celebrity ustads, which has
resulted in a shift in how the audience views religion and
spirituality, specifically Islam.
Thus, the whole industrialization of dakwahtainment with
the whole of props, scripts and setups have become ipso facto
necessity for these programs to flourish in Indonesian television,
hence safe guarding the interest of the supposed uncritical public.
The previously famous preacher Abdullah Gymnastiar (a.k.a. “Aa
Gym”), whose fame skyrocketed from the late 1990s to 2006, had to
succumb to such pressure, and evidently tried hard to appeal to the
Muslim masses. When asked what his formula of success was in
preaching, Aa Gym said, “I only deliver materials that are simple
(tidak rumit-rumit), the easy ones.” (Hernowo and Ridwan 2003: 43).
This pattern of the dakwahtainment programs is indeed
ironic. From the Islamic perspective, it is an obligation for all
Muslims to call others to Islam, as it is considered a noble cause to
bring humanity under the fold of God's blessings. The problem
begins foremost with the dichotomy and deployment of the tontonan
and tuntunan principle, which for the most part has made dakwah
programs to easily succumb to the allures of entertainment business,
hence reducing considerably the integrity and credibility of the
message as well as the messenger, who happen to be celebrity ustads,
who would often receive handsome amounts in return for the
advertisements they invite to such programs.
Behind the scenes, such programs are tightly and directly
observed, usually by the producers and creative teams, who follow a
certain logic that operates within the supposed preference of the
segmented market viewers. They claim to be catering to the
demands of the large body of Indonesian Muslim audience, which
assumingly prefers a combination of the two as opposed to merely
receiving the tuntunan without the pleasure of the tontonan.
It is conceivable that Indonesia's increasing religious
societies will encourage television producers to continue the
dakwahtainment programs. At the end the public should have a voice
on the kind of dakwah program they need on their screens.
***
The author is a Core Doctoral Faculty in the Indonesian Consortium for
Religious Studies (ICRS). He can be contacted at: [email protected].
03
Jerson Benia Narciso
passed his final Dissertation
Examination on January 29,
2013. In his Ph.D. Open
Defense, Jerson successfully
defended his dissertation
entitled Christianity and Islam
in the Search for Peace in Southern Philippines. Admitted into IRCS in
2007, Jerson is the second ICRS student and the first Filipino student to
receive a Ph.D. degree in Inter-Religious Studies at the Indonesian
Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS), Universitas Gadjah Mada
Graduate School.
Jerson's dissertation discusses the potential roles of Christianity
and Islam in bridging the gap and resolving particular conflicts in
Southern Philippines, of which includes negative perception that treats
Islam and Christianity as “natural enemies.”
The main issue addressed by this dissertation is the issue of
whether it is possible for Christians and Muslims to identify and
establish a common theological and political agenda that could bring
forth justice, reconciliation and peace in Southern Philippines. Jersen's
outstanding research explores whether it is possible for Christians and
Muslims to create structured or functional programs of collaboration to
subvert the system of social, economic and political injustice reigning
in Southern Philippines.
Jersen's arguments are based on analysis of the current socio-
political realities in the Southern Philippines and the roles played by
Christians and Muslims (as represented by various Christian and
Islamic groups and organizations) in the Mindanao peace process since
the post-colonial era up to the present time.
Jerson suggests that religion in the Philippines has been
negatively perceived by some quarters as a tool to pacify and to
legitimize authoritarian and repressive regimes. This situation
developed during the era of the Spanish and American colonial rules,
and has continued until the present time. In other words, the colonial
rules used religion as a political and economic instruments for
repression. For instance, both the Spanish and American colonizers
were known to have used religion as a justification for their
imperialism, political subjugation, and economic exploitation. Then,
Jerson brilliantly argued that “this practice of manipulation which
makes religion subservient to the political and economic whims of
authoritarian and repressive regimes has continued over the past four
hundred years and has been perpetuated by some quarters in the
government until now.”
However, Jerson believes that “the identification of a common
theological and political agenda that is informed both by Islamic and
Christian faiths is a viable project”. In fact, he said “Christianity and
Islam share common values and principles, like the universality of
God, interrelatedness and interdependence of all reality, love,
righteousness, justice, equality, and peace”. Those for him are
significant potentials to promote genuine and perpetual peace in
Mindanao through certain theological basis in shaping a unified
theological and political agenda. (Cherry A.)
Ph.D. Open Defense: Christianity and Islam in the Search for Peace in Southern Philippines
05
ICRS in cooperation with the Embassy of the Islamic
Republic of Iran recently organized the International Conference on
Historical and Cultural Presence of Shias in Southeast Asia: Looking at
Future Trajectories. The conference took place the University Club
UGM, on the 21st of February, 2013.
The conference began with the Opening Remarks (Keynote
Speech) by Prof. Dr. Azyumardi Azra, from the State Islamic
University of Sharif Hidayatullah, Jakarta. The conference was
divided into two panels. The first panel discussed the Dynamics of
the Shia in the Archipelago, by presenting four speakers: Dr. Siti
Maryam from State
Islamic University (UIN)
S u n a n K a l i j a g a ,
Yogyakarta; Dr. Yance
Zadrak Rumahuru from
the State College of
Protestant Christ ian
R e l i g i o u s S t u d i e s
(STKAPN) Ambon; Dr.
K a m a r u z z a m a n
Bustaman Ahmad from
the State Islamic Institute
(IAIN) Ar-Raniry, Aceh,
and Dr. Sunyoto Agus
from Global Islamic
S c h o o l Ta r b i y ya t u l
Arifin, Malang.
The second panel
discussed the Dynamics
of the Shia in Southeast
Asia by presenting four
speakers: Dr. Julispong
Chularatana from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand; Dr. Zainal
Abidin Bagir from Center of Religion and Cross-cultural Studies
(CRCS), Universitas Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, Dr. Rabita
Mohamad Ghazali from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, and Dr.
Hosseini from ICAS Jakarta. There were about 250 conference
participants, including academics, religious leaders, activists,
journalists, and government officials.
The main idea emphasized by all of the panels in the
conference was that Shia Muslims in Southeast Asia have had a long
and complex history of development. Shia Muslims in Thailand has
developed since the arrival of traders from Persia in the early
seventeenth century; the role figure was Shaykh Ahmad Qumi of
Iran. He and his followers built the Muslim community in
Ayyuthaya, the capital of the kingdom of Thailand. At that time,
there were three groups of Muslims in Ayyuthaya. The first group
lived in the outskirts along the Chao Praya river. The second group
is a community outside the walls of the city, near the river. The third
group is the community living within the city wall. Thailand is the
first country in Southeast Asia to establish permanent diplomatic
relations with Iran (1925-1979).
THE PRESENCE OF SHIAAND ITS TRAJECTORY
I N S O U T H E A S T A S I A
Shia Muslims in Indonesia began in the fourth century. The
Acheya town (now Aceh) in northern part of Sumatra was the
center of Shia Muslims in Indonesia. Acheya become the center of
Shi'ism missionary to the most parts of Indonesia. At that time, the
community was mostly centralized in the Kowal town (now Kuala).
Then, shortly after the Indonesian independence, the Government
of Indonesia established a university in the Kowal, known as the
University of Shia Kowal (Universitas Syiah Kuala). Within thirty
years, the Shia community spread throughout Indonesia and it is
estimated there are one million Shi'i. Shia communities are found in
major cities, such as Jakarta, Bandung and Surabaya.
The Shia community also flourished in Malaysia,
particularly in Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia, Selangor.
Evenmore, this country is the home of the largest Shia communities.
In Singapore, Shia Islam has grown since World War I, between
1914-1918. At the time of Japanese occupation in Singapore on 1942-
1945, prisoners of the war (British Indian Army) and local
communities were allowed to celebrate Muharram (Islamic New
Year) and to organize Shia religious rituals associated with the
celebration. As befits
Indonesian students, a
large number of Malay
a n d S i n g a p o r e a n
students travelled to
Iran, or continued their
studies at the Theological
Seminaries in Qom.
I n t h e r e c e n t
developments, the Shia
Muslim's communities in
S o u t h e a s t A s i a
f r e q u e n t l y f a c e
d i s c r i m i n a t i o n a n d
marginalization. In the
Indonesian context ,
during the era of Suharto
regime, Shia Muslims
w e r e v i e w e d a s a
national threat, as they
were considered as a
revolutionary movement that threatened the regime. The anti-Shia
notion in Indonesia were also spreading widely through
publications, including books, journals, magazines, and websites.
The recent case of discrimination Shia Muslim occurred in Cikeusik
(West Java) and Sampang (Madura), where the Shia communities
were attacked by a group of people, left some of them were killed
and hundreds of burning houses.
In Malaysia, the pressure on Shia communities come from
the state, which stigmatizes them as a "forbidden" religious group.
According to the Malaysian security law, a member of Shia
community can be detained without trial process. The country
guarantees freedom of religion, but in the Islamic tradition, only
schools of Sunni are permitted and received the government aid.
While, other schools, including Shia Islam, are considered deviant
and their activities are restricted. While in Singapore, the issue of
marriage is one of the important issues for Shia communities. To
make a marriage official for Shia couple, they have to obtain grants
from both Shi'ite and Sunni imams. The same problems are faced by
them when filing for divorces, birth certificates and other legal
matters. (Cherry A.)
06
Cherry Agusta and Marthen Tahun
“Pentecostal/Charismatic movements are Christian movements that
are undoubtedly among the fastest growing religious movements in
the world.” This was the opening remark of Marthen Tahun in the
CRCS-ICRS Wednesday Forum, held in the Department of
Theology, Duta Wacana Christian University on Wednesday, March th6 , 2013. Marthen Tahun is a researcher in the Center of Religion and
Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS), Universitas Gadjah Mada.
The study of Pentecostal/Charismatic movements in many
places concluded that the fast-growth of these movements were
supported by the following aspects: it grew along with the growth of
Evangelical-leaning churches, it reached out to the urban marginal
migrants, it marked with egalitarian ethos by allowing the female
members to actively be involved in the church's activities, the
independence organization, and it emphasized the “experience”
with the Holy Spirit. Marthen further explained the general
overview of the present Pentecostal/Charismatic churches in
Indonesia. His report mainly focused on two issues: the role of
women and the mobilization of church members.
The report is based on the research conducted by CRCS within
the period 2010-2012. It found that the female members of the
Pentecostal/Charismatic churches are greater than the male
members. The women held important position and roles within the
church, visibly led activities such as liturgy and Bible studies, and
were involved in the administrative and social services. They also
took part in almost any male roles in the church. Nevertheless, these
churches held different views in woman leadership, which is how
far it could be implemented in the church. The issue of the
permissibility of women to become leaders is a hotly debated issue
in the history of Pentecostal churches in Indonesia, which is, in fact,
one of the point of discordances among these churches. In general,
there are three positions on the issue. First, women enjoy equal role
with men in any aspect of church's activities, including becoming
pastors. The second position asserts that women are allowed to take
part in any activity, including becoming pastors, but there are
restrictions to certain activities that are domain of male pastors, such
as wedding ceremonial and communion services. Thirdly, women
are allowed to take part in any church activities but cannot be elected
as pastors.
In the case of the mobility of the church's members, Marthen
explained that Pentecostal/Charismatic church's members are
coming from various backgrounds. Some are coming from the
P e n t e c o s t a l c h u r c h e s , w h i l e o t h e r s f r o m n o n -
Pentecostal/Charismatic, such as from the Protestant and Catholic
churches. A small number of them are from non-Christian
backgrounds. Most of the Pentecostal/Charismatic churches are
developed in urban settings. This condition ensures the quantity of
participants at any Sunday service. Some of the members of these
churches are registered members but many others are temporary
goers, or even some are registered in other Pentecostal/Charismatic
churches. Double membership is also found in this research. In
connection with this, among the temporary goers, the research
found that many of them never leave the original church. There is
minor indication of backflow tendency to the original churches.
In Q&A session, one participant asked about the relationship
between the research objective and the pluralistic context of
Indonesian society. Marthen answered that one of the objective of
this research is to develop academic understanding regarding
religious issues in Indonesia. In this regard, demographic
understanding of Pentecostal/Charismatic groups in Indonesia and
its relationship with non-Pentecostal/Charismatic churches and
other religions is important. It can help determine the future
program of involving these groups in larger conversations and
dialogues regarding domestic issues in intra- and inter-religious
communities [].
Pentecostal Movement in Indonesia:The Role of Women and the Mobility of Church Members
W e d n e s d a y F o r u m
Doctoral Promotion
Annual Report on Religious Life in Indonesia 2012
now available at www.crcs.ugm.ac.id/download
Annual Report on Religious Life in Indonesia 2012
now available at www.crcs.ugm.ac.id/download
07
It has become truism to remark that there is veritable
explosion on economic, political, and religious issues in Indonesian
public sphere. In termof economic, advertisements tremendously
fill up public space. The advertisements are every where, in radio,
television, bill boards, newspapers, magazines, internet, and even
handphones. This phenomena is remarkably different from those of
20 years ago. In this sense, various modern mass media plays pivotal
role in bringing economic elements into public space.
Political issues are also emerging. Ironically, the issues are
dominated by politics and violence. Every media brings stories
about political intrigues and violence to public. In this context,
media told political stories on uncontrolled pragmatic attitudes in
pursuing of and maintaining of power. In thi sense, there is no clear
boundary between just and unjust violence. The line between
government's legal violence and non-government's illegal's
violence also become unclear. For instance, in the case of Kopassus's
members killed criminals in the Cebongan Prison. Moreover,
religious issues also play significant role. For instance, call to
Muslim prayer is everywhere in television channels. There is also
requirement to wear hijab for Muslim and non-Muslim in certain
areas. In addition, religious issues also grow in film, public
education, architecture, literature, and many others.
Prof. Dr. Bernard T. Adeney-Risakotta (Bernie), the
international representative of Indonesian Consortium for Religious
Studies (ICRS-Yogya), presented this enlightening topic. On April
24th, 2013, Bernie bocome a speaker on the CRCS-ICRS Wed-Forum.
Bernie was a director of ICRS-UGM and Professor of Ethics and
Social Science in the same institution. He received his bachelor
degree in Asian Studies and English Literature from the University
of Wisconsin, Madison, while his master degree was obtained from
the University of London, in Social Ethics and Asian Religions. His
doctoral degree was earned from the Graduate Theological Union at
the University of California, Berkeley, in Religion and Society, Social
Ethics and Political Science.
Bernie criticize what he calls “unholy marriage between
economics, politics and religion” in Indonesian public sphere. He
refers to the controversy about Golkar Treasurer's statement
mentioning at least 1 billion (milyar) rupiah needed to become a
political candidate. Meanwhile, the another issue is considerable
accuse of corruption to politicians and police. Moreover, religious
groups committed to violent actions attacking other groups to force
their arguments. Specifically, Bernie mentioned the case of Yasmin
church in Bogor to show “the love triangle between politics,
economics and religion.”
Then, Bernie address the ideal of public sphere in Western
countries to compare and to contrast with the case of Indonesian
public sphere. He further explains that, ideally, impartiality of
public sphere and freedom on it are essential. In this sense, people
from various backgrounds can express their ideas freely and savely.
This ideal is built on democratic, human rights and Enlightenment
assumptions. Freedom, civility and reason are the most
fundamental values underlying such assumptions. Moreover, he
convincingly explains that public sphere should empower every
citizen and it can be a place of deliberation to reach a public
consensus for the common good.
In his conclusion, Bernie also critically identify three factors
distorting public sphere in Indonesia, as follows: Firstly, there is
lacking of clear separation between the public and the private in
Indonesia; Secondly, people from different religions, each has a
tendency to make their religions can order public sphere; Thirdly,
non-religious sphere in Indonesia are never really secular and
neutral. Therefore, Bernie argue that Nurcholis Madjid's discourse
on secularization is very relevant to consider to address the issue of
distorted public sphere in Indonesia. This includes separation
between religion and politics by using tauhid, emphasizing on
substantion rather than symbol of religion, multicultural
appreciation, and defending of Pancasila.
RELIGION AND THE PUBLIC SPHERE
IN INDONESIA REVISITED
W e d n e s d a y F o r u m
The pdf file of this book is available at www.crcs.ugm.ac.id
On January 31, 2013, CRCS'director, Zainal Abidin Bagir, came to the
Indonesian Constitutional Court's session on the Judicial Review of
Law Number 8 of 1981 about the Indonesian Criminal Code (Article
156a) and the Law No. 1/PNPS 1965 on Prevention of Misusing and
or Defamation towards Religions (Article No. 4).
Zainal presented the finding of CRCS' research on the uses of the law
within the last decade. He said that legal prosecution used in this
law has increased dramatically since the Reform era. In the past, the
law was only used 5 times in 40 years. The number skyrocketed into
40 cases in only the last 15 years.
The increasing use of the law is marred with the expanding category
of target groups, including religious groups that have been
historically acknowledged as part of Islam, such as Syi'ah. The law is
also used to address issues of social relations that could be
addressed through mediation. A good example of this is the
prosecution of a community member who unplugged the cable of
mosque speaker because he felt annoyed by the noise.
The diversity of cases brought to the court in the name of this law
indicates a problem with this law. He said “The cases brought to the
court using this law are very diverse. This law seems to be blind in
recognizing this diversity. In Indonesia it is difficult to find case
brought to the court using this law that is purely about blasphemy.
In other countries we can see the case of The Innocence of Muslim
movie that could be intended to insult a Islam.”This flexible use of
this law could potentially become a wild ball that may hit a wide
variety of issues including those that do not relate to religion. Zainal
calls attention to Article 4 of the UU 156, which says that a case can be
prosecuted by this law if it constitutes an intention to promote
“enmity” toward a religion. Unfortunately the uses of this law tend
to blindly categorize many cases of internal difference of religion
and social issues as blasphemous to religion even though they do not
have the element of “spreading enmity. ”
“The Blasphemy Law is Blind of Case Diversity “Zainal Abidin Bagir delivered his testimony at the Judicial Review of the Blasphemy Law
08
Advisor: Dr. Siti Syamsiyatun, Dr. Zainal Abidin Bagir
Editors: Dr. Mohammad Iqbal Ahnaf, Leonard C. Epafras, Ph.D.
Managing Editors: Najiyah Martiam, M.A., Hendrikus P. Kaunang, M.A.
Layout: Wijaya Media
E d i t o r i a l S t r u c t u r e