Jakarta Globe:

Every Thursday afternoon without fail, they turn up outside the front gates of the State Palace in Central Jakarta, a group of just over a dozen elderly people. …………….. ……………………

No repercussions

In the past four years, at least 30 Ahmadiyah mosques have been forced to close while violence against religious minorities including the Ahmadis has increased dramatically, Pearson says.

A study by the Setara Institute showed the number of attacks almost doubled from 135 in 2007 to 244 in 2011.

The government claims it has addressed the problem of the anti-Ahmadiyah violence through a joint ministerial decree issued in 2008 that “regulates the proselytization of the Ahmadis as well as call on people to forbid any level of violence against religious groups.”

However, Pearson says the decree fails to address the fact, or the reality that the police are siding with the militants on the grounds of supporting harmony in the community.

“I was in Indonesia last November and visited an Ahmadiyah mosque in Bekasi. The imam told me that the mosque had been there for 30 years and prior to 2005, non-Ahmadiyah actually came to that mosque and prayed,” she says. “However, as a result of the decree, the militants started threatening members of the community and the mosque was forced to close.”

Banning these militants groups is not the solution, Pearson insists. She says watchdogs like HRW want better law enforcement to stop the militants from abusing their freedom of expression by threatening violence or inciting criminal action against all minority groups.

“It is problematic when a situation turns to violence and people start breaking down the door to interrupt, whether it is a press conference, a congregation of people praying, and they physically beat and assault people,” she says. “There should be repercussions for that but there aren’t any.” Read more