‘Infidels’ Angry at Failure to Annul Blasphemy Law

Jakarta Globe, Nurfika Osman, April 21, 2010

Labeled an infidel by village administration officers, Elly Sukemi, a woman from the Sasak tribe in West Nusa Tenggara, chose not to back down.

“The Wetu Telu ritual I perform as part of my traditional religion is sacred. It welcomes Ramadan [the Islamic fasting month]. According to my religion, if you insult us, you must pay. I asked those officers to slaughter a goat as the fine,” Elly said on Wednesday, two days after the Constitutional Court ruled to uphold the 1965 Blasphemy Law, which provides criminal penalties for those who express religious beliefs that deviate from the central tenets of the six state-recognized faiths.

“But, they refused to slaughter a goat and pay the fine. We find that insulting, because we love our traditional rituals. It is something that makes our country rich. How can they call us kafir [infidels], or followers of a misguided sect, or atheists?”

Elly was one of 30 women on Wednesday who expressed their deep disappointment over the court ruling, which rejected a motion by human rights applicants to review or annul the Blasphemy Law on grounds that it violated freedom of religion. Elly said the government had failed to protect their Constitutional rights — security and protection as citizens.

Elly’s friend, Nurseri Hartini, said that aside from being insulted, access to health care was difficult for Sasak people.

“We have Jamkesmas [state health insurance] but nobody serves us. We are Muslims but we believe in Wetu Telu rituals. So, we are not treated like everybody else,” Nurseri said, adding that her tribe was one of seven in the northern part of West Nusa Tenggara whose members were considered infidels. Under the Constitution, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Catholicism, Protestantism and Confucianism are state-recognized faiths. Followers of unorthodox interpretations of the religions, such as the Ahmadiyah, are not protected.

Tenri Bibi, a woman from the Tolotang tribe of South Sulawesi, said Indonesia should acknowledge other religions.

“Can you imagine that we cannot state our religion on our own ID card? We cannot have a marriage certificate. Our children cannot have birth certificates. Children born out of wedlock lose rights to property. We want the state to officially say that our local religions are equal in status with the six official religions,” Tenri said.

Agnes Dwi, from the National Alliance of the Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity), said there were some 1,400 ethnicities whose traditional beliefs were threatened by law.

“We are going to meet officials from the Ministry for Women’s Empowerment and Child Protection regarding the plight of all these women,” Agnes said.

The National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) also expressed disappointment with the court.

“That ruling is an act that strengthens discrimination against groups of people who plights are threatened,” said Masruchah, deputy chairwoman of Komnas Perempuan.

“When they cannot have their IDs, they lose access to public services, including legal and health services,” she said. “As they cannot have marriage certificates, they cannot file reports if they are abused by their husbands .”