|
By Lynn Lee & Wahyudi Soeriaatmadja
JAKARTA: Religious tolerance has had a bleak year in Indonesia, according to a new study by a think-tank linked to the country's largest Islamic organisation Nahdlatul Ulama.
In its report on the state of religious pluralism released last week, the Wahid Institute said that 234 violations of religious freedom occurred in the first 11 months of this year, a 19 per cent increase from last year.
Figures from earlier years were unavailable because the four-year-old institute did not carry out detailed studies before last year. The institute was set up to promote moderate Islam and named after former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid.
Civilian groups the main culprits
BETWEEN January and last month, there were 234 cases of violation of religious freedom compared with 197 last year.
Three in five cases were by civilian groups, such as the radical Islamic Defenders Front. The bulk of remaining cases were by the state, such as the police, the courts and local administrators.
Violation of religious freedom was classified into eight types, including violent attacks on people of different religions, destruction of houses of worship and laws limiting religious freedom.
For more The Straits Times stories, click here.
 |
Is this article useful to you?
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 
