The Jakarta Post |
Jajang Jahroni’s article (The Jakarta Post, p. 6) on Friday, July 8, about bringing the ulema back in is thought-provoking. What caught my attention was the sentence: “This is the reason why democratization in many Muslim countries is so poor.”
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion
The problem outlined: When ulemas have to compete with the state. In a classic democracy there is first and foremost separation of state and church. That’s the reason why Saudi Arabia will never be a “democracy” as the ulema is the state. An interesting book is The Wave: Man, God, and the Ballot Box in the Middle East (Reuel Marc Gerecht).
Turkey and Indonesia are republics (as is the US!). Freedom of religion is still debated in Turkey because the Alevis (a Shia sect) are demanding their rights; the teaching/reading of the Koran (Sunni version only) is mandated in all schools for everyone.
The letter by Phillip Turnbull, “Teaching religious values” (July 8), is an excellent idea but should be all-inclusive: For every major religion, not just Islam.
Categories: Indonesia