Indonesia

Indonesia breaks mass wedding record

 The couples joining the mass wedding were of various ethnics and religion.  The youngest couple was aged 16, while the oldest was 86. JAKARTA – INDONESIA broke the world record for mass weddings when 4,501 couples got married at the Sports Palace of Senayan in Jakarta, local media reported on […]

Indonesian President praises Muslims’ pluralism

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has praised the country’s largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), for its commitment in supporting pluralism. “I praise the NU’s consistency in upholding the four pillars of our society, namely Pancasila [five principles], the 1945 constitution, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika [unity in diversity], and the Unitary State […]

Being Jewish in Indonesia

Being a minority of about 10 in a predominantly Muslim country of almost 250 million people is truly being a minority. My National Identity Card lists me as a Christian, since every citizen is required to profess one of six prescribed religions by law – none of which is Judaism. […]

Letter: Ulema and state affairs

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 problem outlined: When ulemas have […]

Indonesia arrests school principal after explosion

Source: Khaleej Times Indonesia on Friday arrested a principal of an Islamic boarding school suspected of being a bomb factory, following an explosion inside the campus that killed a man earlier this week, police said. Identified only as Abrori, the teacher was detained at his parents’ house in Bolo sub-district […]

In Indonesia, civil society is keeping tolerance alive

By Testriono, The Daily Star Recent cases of religious intolerance in Indonesia have led some observers to worry that U.S. President Barack Obama’s praise of religious tolerance in Indonesia during his visit in November 2010 was exaggerated. Public statements and decrees from Indonesian government officials have discredited religious minority groups […]

Poll: Young in Malaysia, Indonesia oppose polygamy

The vast majority of young Muslims in Indonesia and Malaysia appear to disapprove of the traditional acceptance of polygamy but remain reluctant to openly support interfaith marriages or premarital sex, a new survey shows. In the survey coordinated by two German-based cultural organizations, 86.5 percent of 1,496 Indonesians interviewed and 72.7 percent […]

Indonesians Climb into History With Seven Summits

A group of Indonesian climbers successfully reached the summit of Alaska’s Mount McKinley on Thursday, completing their goal of reaching the highest peaks on each of the seven continents. The ascent of the 6,194-meter-high McKinley, also known as Denali, makes the four climbers from Parahyangan Catholic University in Bandung — […]

Indonesia urged to repeal blasphemy laws

Indonesia has been urged to repeal its blasphemy laws and provide greater protection to religious minorities – including Christians and the Muslim Ahmadiyya sect – in order to safeguard its reputation as one of the world’s most progressive and tolerant Muslim-majority countries. “If extremists are allowed to continue to terrorise religious minorities with impunity, […]