newsletter vol.3 fix pdf revisi
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Center for Religious and Cross-cultural StudiesGraduate School, Universitas Gadjah Mada
Gadjah Mada Graduate Building, III Floor, Jl. Teknika Utara, Pogung, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55281: [email protected] (62-274-544976), : [email protected] (62-274-562570) CRCS ICRS
http://crcs.ugm.ac.id, http://icrs.ugm.ac.id
on Religious Life in IndonesiaVolume 3, May 2014 PDF Version
of this newsletter
is available at
www.icrs.ugm.ac.id
and www.crcs.ac.id
As Indonesia is seen by many observers to
be inching toward becoming an established
democracy, the 2014 general election in April can
be considered the last stage before the country can
proudly proclaim to be the only nation with a
dominant Muslim culture to make democracy
work. This encouraging prospect may be
hampered, however, by the continued prevalence
of identity politics. Although this trend may not
be reflected in the sphere of national politics
where nationalist parties have continued to
remain dominant over religious-based parties,
political outbidding based on religious and ethnic
sentiment is not uncommon in local elections.
This is significant, because local elections take
place more frequently than the five year national
election cycle, and regional elections more directly
effect local dynamics. The continued influence of
identity politics in local elections could hamper
the progress of democracy that requires civic
values to overcome communal values without subjugating identity-based freedom of expression.
To better deal with the ugly face of identity politics and its effect on democracy, the case of
anti-Shiite violence in Sampang provides a valuable lesson.
Why Sampang?
The recent anti-Shiite violence in Sampang, East Java, has been the subject of major interest
in the discussion of religious freedom in Indonesia. However, as the majority of attention garnered
by the case has been focused on the issues of religious and cultural intolerance, the obvious role of
local politics in the dynamics of the conflict has been overlooked. The conflict might have started
with religious and cultural tensions, but as it develeped, an important question emerged: why did
the conflict only target the Shiite community in one particular village on the island?
This question is interesting for two reasons. First, although traditionalist Muslim Sunnis are
the majority on Madura island, small Shiite communities or pesantren exist without issue in other
locations on the island. The traditionalist Muslims were not historically intolerant to Shiism. In fact,
the ritual of singing Barzanji poems that is common among traditionalist Muslims contains
adorations for Hassan and Hussain, two Muslim figures central in Shiite belief. There is a concern
among Sunnis regarding Shiite's rhetorical hostility to three of the four companions of the Prophet
Muhammad who are highly respected by Sunnis, but those practices only represent one segment of
the diverse Shiite communties. Violence against Shiite communities by traditionalist Muslims is
thus new.
Second, narratives that are deployed on the ground describe the animosity against Shiism as
a reaction towards something that is considered hostile and dangerous to Sunni teachings. These
narratives even go as far as connecting Shiism to the brutality of Bashar al-Assad in Syria, and
01
Local Elections and Intolerance: A Lesson from Sampang
M. Iqbal Ahnaf
Photo Courtesy Inside Indonesia
Advisors:
Dr. Syamsiyatun, Dr. Zainal Abidin Bagir
Editorial Commitee:
M. Iqbal Ahnaf (Editor in Chief), Leonard C. Epafras,
Kelli Swazey, Najiyah Martiyam, Hendrikus P. Kaunang
Editor:
Kelli Swazey
News Writers:
Zainal Abidin Bagir, Leonard C. Epafras, Kelli Swazey, Najiyah Martiyam,
Hendrikus P. Kaunang, Marthen Tahun, Reza Saputra, Hary Widyantoro,
Management:
Hendrikus P. Kaunang
Layout:
Wijaya Media
Editorial Team
associating the presence of Shiism in Indonesia with a Jewish anti-
Islamic conspiracy. Despite this generalized animosity toward Shiism,
only a few Shiite communities, including Sampang, suffered attacks.
What explains this rare incidence of violence?
Sampang Election, 2012
A closer look at the dynamics of local politics can help to explain
the localized nature of the violence in Sampang. Exploration of the role
of the district head (bupati) of Sampang, Noer Tjahja, cannot be neglected
in this case.Tjahja ruled the district from 2008-2012 and ran for re-
election in 2012, coinciding with the peak of the conflict. The involvment
of other prominent anti-Shiite leaders,such as the widely respected
cleric Ali Karrar, and Rois Hukama, a former Shiite and brother of the
persecuted Shiite leader (Tajul Muluk) who turned hateful toward his
brother and to Shiism, is also significant.
Unlike many other politicians in Madura who are also religious
leaders or at least have family linkages to religious elites, Noer Tjahja is
an experienced bureaucrat. In 2008, he won the election by taking a
religious cleric, Fadillah Budiono, as his running mate. His victory was
not by a landslide, however. One of the areas where he lost was the
village of Karanggayam. This is where the Shiite commnity lived before
they were attacked and expelled. During his bid for re-election, he
needed to win in Karanggayam. Expanding his electoral base by
targeting the area where he had previously failed to receive enough
votes was especially important because winning the 2012 re-election
would prove to be more difficult than in 2008. Many of his competitors in
the 2012 election were religious clerics, including his former running
m a t e F a d i l l a h
Budiono who was
running against
him for the district
h e a d p o s i t i o n .
Winning the hearts
and minds of the
t r a d i t i o n a l i s t
Muslim majority voters was also more challenging due to a rhetorical
blunder he made when he publicly stated that many traditionalist
Muslims considered him insulting. In short, he was left with no choice
but to seek ways to increase his popularity in religious terms.
This need coincided with the escalation of the anti-Shiite conflict
centered in Blu'uran, a sub-village of Karanggayam. This context should
help us to understand why Noer Tjahja became deeply involved in the
persecution of the Shiite communities in Blu'uran. His role in the
development of the conflict includes taking part in the coordination of
meetings between ulama and government agencies aimed at pressuring
Tajul Muluk and his followers to leave Shiism; change to issuing a
district regulation prohibiting the presence of Shiism in Sampang; and
intensifying government activities in the areas where the conflict took
place.
His most explicit support for the persecution of the Shiite
community is found in a speech in he gave in February of 2012 at a
religious ceremony commemorating the birth of Prophet Muhammad.
At the event, which took place not long before the election, Tjahja
condemned Tajul Muluk and his teaching and called for the expulsion of
him and those of his followers who refused to repent. He asked police
officers to arrest Shiite followers. At last he promised that if he was
reelected, he would expel the Shiites within three months.
A minute after the speech, Rois Hukama, the prominent anti-
Shiite activist who wore a turban put a hand on Noer Tjahja's shoulder to
call for voting for Noer Tjahja.
A combination of a number of different factors may have caused
the escalation of the conflict; but Noer Tjahja's political interests made
him not only partial to the anti-Shiite sentiments, but also led him to play
a significant role in an intolerant movement, this has created a political
opportunity structure allowing intolerance and violence.
East Java Election, 2013
By the time the Sampang election was finished, the Shiite
community had already been moved out of Sampang. They were sent to
temporary housing in Sidoarjo, in the suburbs of Surabaya. This so
called 'relocation' shifted the administration of the Shiite refugees from
the district to the provincial government. This allowed the provincial
government leaders Soekarwo and Saifullah Yusuf, who were also
running for reelction, to have more of a role in adresssing the case.
Based on information from a local informant who has connection
with Soekarwo-Saifullah's campaign, Sampang was a special region in
their reelection bid, much like that of Karanggayam was for Noer Tjahja.
Information provided by the source suggested that social elites in
Sampang played a role in demobilizing voters in the region who would
have voted for their competitors, Khofifah and Mudjiono. In return,
Soekarwo and Saifullah fulfilled the demand of elites in Sampang to
support the explusion of the Shiites residing there.
Religious leaders have been pressuring the governor to take part
in the eradication of the so-called 'deviant' sect of Shiism in Sampang
and East Java in general. The governor of East Java capitulated to this
pressure by issuing Gubenatorial Regulation No 55, 2012, on the
monitoring of deviant sects. Even though the regulation does not
specifically mention Shiism as a deviant sect, it is widely seen as proof of
the governor's support for the campaign. The governor's evident
support for anti-Shiite initiatives took other forms, such ashis facilitation
of the anti-Shiite ulama's campaign at the national level to prohibit
Shiism in Indonesia. Local government funding was also promised to
help facilitate the explusion of Shiites from their hometown in Sampang.
T h e r h e t o r i c o f
religious outbidding
used by the Soekarwo-
Saifullah campaign is
not as explicit as the
statements made by
N o e r T j a h j a . Ye t
sectarian rhetoric is
rarely made public. The Soekarwo-Saifullah campaign's use of religious
sentiment for electoral mobilization is reflected in their policies and
programs that favored one party in the conflict at the expense of the
persecution of another population on the grounds of religious identity.
Conclusion
Identity politics are not always bad for democracy, as
suggested by Amy Gutman in her book “Identity in Democracy” (2004).
For Gutman, identity politics in democracy can be bad, good and ugly.
They can be good when religious values or identity politics are used in
political campaigns to promote justice and equality. Religious based
civil society organizations in Indonesia like NU and Muhamadiyah have
been been on the front line of efforts to promote the values of moderation
and Pancasila as foundations for integrating a diverse nation. However,
religious outbidding that focuses on animosity toward other groups
based on their religious beliefs is certainly bad or harmful for democracy.
The Sampang case provides a lesson about religious outbidding's
harmful impact on democracy. This is not unique to the Sampang case.
Many local leaders resort to intolerant policies to gain popularity. The
impact of these practices in elections varies; what is certain is the role
they plave in polarizing societies around religious lines. No less
dangerously, identity politics are often used by bureucrats and
politicians to cover their corruption and failure in development
programs.
M. Iqbal Ahnaf is a faculty member at the Center for
Religious and Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS), Graduate
School, Gadjah Mada University. He teaches two courses:
"Violence and Peace in Religions" and "Religion, State and
Society"
02
A combination of a number of factors may have caused the escalation of the
conflict; but Noer Tjahja's political interests made him not only partial to the anti-
Shiite sentiment but also led him to play a significant role in an intolerant
movement and has created a political opportunity structure allowing intolerance
and violence.
03
Experiencing the sacred spaces of others was the main theme
of the Interfaith Youth Pilgrimage program (IYP) that ran from
November 10-20, 2013.The main objective of this program is to increase
the spirit of tolerance and appreciation between people of different
religious affiliations, especially among young religious adherents.
During the ten days of the program activities, all participants traveled to
various cities around Java, visiting Yogyakarta, Klaten, Solo, Salatiga,
and Magelang. They also visited religious places and universities to get
more information about inter-religious relationships in society.
Participants also had the opportunity to live with families from different
religious backgrounds, so Muslim participants stayed with Christian
families, and non-Muslim participants had a chance to stay at an Islamic
boarding school.
The Interfaith Youth Pilgrimage program was one of the initiatives
chosen to receive funding through the 2013 Alumni Engagement
Innovation Fund. The program had twenty-eight participants coming
from areas around the archipelago such as Sumatra, Kalimantan,
Sulawesi, Java, Bali, NTT-NTB and Ambon. There are several local
partners supporting the program, including the Indonesian Consortium
for Religious Studies (ICRS), CRCS UGM, Dian Interfidei, PERCIK, GKJ
Sidomukti, Edi Mancoro Islamic boarding school and Al Urwatul
Wutsqo Islamic boarding school.
Through their participation in this program, youth are expected to
build management skills for overcoming the kinds of conflicts that have
occurred over the last few years between different religious affiliations
in Indonesia. The IYP program facilitates opportunities for youth to
gather and share their creative ideas on the topic of inter-religious peace
in Indonesia. It is also hoped that after completing the program, they will
be able to provide recommendations to the government related to the
resolution of religious conflict in Indonesia. “Questioning other
religions and [their] differences is no longer relevant, for now what's
important is for us to create peace which will enable us to do good deeds
and to create a better and more humane world,” said Edward, a
participant from Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara.
Interestingly, during their stay at the Islamic boarding school,
students in the program were allowed to participate in the observation
of the Friday prayer. Bagyo, a participant from a Buddhist background
shared that “What is interesting about the IYP program is to be able to
live in a pesantren (Islamic boarding school) because I don't know much
about pesantren. I only know about them from hear say and from
coverage in the media reflecting the radical teachings disseminated
through the pesantren institutions. By participating in the IYP, I can
experience first-hand how life is in a pesantren. I can participate in the
rituals, and through participation in Friday prayer I can almost find the
intersection between Buddhism and Islam, especially in how silence and
tranquility is valued.”
The IYP program was a success overall, creating lasting memories
and impressions among the participants. Participants learned to share
their religious experiences with each other, and also tried to find the best
way to solve the many religious conflicts occurring around Indonesia.
Experiencing the Sacred Spaces of Others
Those who attended the program made a commitment to maintain and
spread the peace virus in Indonesian society. “I think the IYP is a very
useful program for supporting inter-religious harmony in Indonesia,
and I feel that this is a great opportunity for me to get to know the
diversity of Indonesia” explained Puji, participant from Bali, in her
interview with the IYP team. (Erich)
In his doctoral
open defense , the
I n t e r n a t i o n a l
Consortium of Religion
program's s tudent
S y a m s u M a d y a n
p r e s e n t e d h i s
dissertation entitled
W h e n I s l a m M e e t s
Medicine: the Interplay of
Power and Agency among Muslims Living with HIV & AIDS as Socially
Constructed Realities in Indonesia. Maydan's dissertation is focused on the
encounter between religion and science in the context of HIV & AIDS.
The research for this dissertation stemmed from Maydan's
experiences engaging in AIDS activism. In his dissertation, he observes
that there is a reciprocal interaction between religion and science in the
context of AIDS. “Religious interpretations about AIDS tend to be
affected by the explanations from medical world,” Madyan said. In
addition, he also found that scientific explanations of AIDS are affected
by the religious beliefs of medical practitioners.
In his presentation, Madyan described the many contradictions
and debates he found related to AIDS, both in the religious and medical
(scientific) domains. In religious domains, there is a widespread opinion
that AIDS is something pertaining to morality. Some people construct
their ideas about AIDS based on concepts from “liberation theology”
where the problem of AIDS is perceived as part of the failure to achieve
social justice in the world. Aside from religious arguments, tension also
stems from the medical perspective at institutional and individual
levels. “The explanation about AIDS in medical text books, for example,
is not always adopted by doctors or other medical practitioners,”
Madyan said.
The complexity of the encounter between science and religion in
the discussion of AIDS has resulted in the development of a new domain
of treatment known as “alternative medication for AIDS.” Madyan
explained that this new domain for treatment of the illness cannot be
categorized either as entirely religious or entirely scientific. “This new
domain has an epistemological basis that is autonomous and
independent, and it has a different method, as well as different
instruments of measurement in comparison to the scientific or religious
domains before. This domain, at a certain level, is positioned in
opposition to concepts of religion and science,”Madyan said. Therefore,
conflict and contradiction between the three domains cannot be avoided
to the certain level.
Throughout his dissertation Madyan tried to answer questions
about AIDS in Indonesia as part of a dynamic discourse of contention.
He also explored many discourses about AIDS in Indonesia which need
to be understood as part of the power mechanisms that engage many
actors at both the institutional and individual levels, as well as Muslim
leaders in Indonesia, medical authorities, and practitioners of
alternative medicine. “In this dissertation I try to locate Muslim people
with HIV/AIDS in Indonesia within the complexity of Indonesian
society. I also want to portray the diversity of Muslim people with
HIV/AIDS in Indonesia, seeing them as actors with the ability to be
involved in the various social roles through a continuously and close
relationship”. (Erich)
Dissertation Defense:
and Science in the Context of HIV/AIDS
The Interaction of Religion
In the first meeting of the Wednesday Forum for the Spring
Semester on February 12 , 2014, Leonard C. Epafras explained that
Jewish identity is always a blur, and that it is not easy to pin down an
identity with certainty. Epafras said that there are two ways to
discern an identity: the first is through a positive construction of
identity, and the other way is through a negative construction of
identity. Positive constructions of identity refer to the tangible and
immediately accessible aspects of identity, such as manner of
speaking, histories, and material culture. In contrast, negative
constructions of identity have limited correlation with tangible
things, and include abstractions, caricatures, stereotypes, and social
types. Positive and negative constructions of identity are
intertwined theoretical concepts.
The negative construction of identity is very prevalent in the
discussion of Jews in Indonesia, with
e x a m p l e s o f a n t i - S e m i t i s m ,
philosemitism, Islamophobia,
xenophobia, and allophilia. Epafras
explained that he does not only talk
about contemporary Jewish identity
in Indonesia, but that he explores the
dynamics of Jewish identity in
Nusantara. His discussion does not
explicate all faces of Jews in
Nusantara, but investigates the areas
where Jewish identity is contested,
developed, and changed. Referring
to Allon (2002), Leo denoted that
there are a number of categories of
Jewish identity. The first category is
belief, referring to the fact that
anyone can convert to Judaism. The
second category is culture, referring
to how participation in Jewish
culture is a means of identifying as a
Jew. The third category is refers to
Judaism as a personal preference,
meaning if someone thinks that he is
a Jew, he or she can be identified as
one. The fourth category is ethnicity,
meaning that someone's Jewish
identity is inherited. The fifth
category is maternal inheritance of
Jewish identity. Epafras added the category of constructivism,
which refers to when Jewish identity is constructed within certain
contexts.
Epafras explained that in the pre-colonial era, Jewish
identity was a complicated phenomenon. Jews either as Christians
or as Muslims compouned its identity categorization. During the
colonial period, Jews were very active in trading, traveling to places
like Yemen, Southeast Asia, and China. Epafras explained that Jews
and Arabs were intermingling in these areas of trade. Meanwhile, in
Malaka, Jews had been forced to convert to Christianity, an action
that Epafras attributes to a method of escaping from discrimination.
Although Jews were identified as Christians in public spaces, many
of them remained Jewish in private. They continued to express their
Jewishness by performing Judaic rites called Marranos.
04
Epafras recounted the story of Ya'aqov Safir Halevi, a rabbi
who collected the money for the Jews in Palestine, and journeyed to
Egypt, Yemen, India, and Australia from 1822-1855. As a rabbi, he
wanted to see how lively the Jewish community was in Batavia and
Java. Halevi described that the Jews there had forgotten their Judaic
tradition, especially the men who married local women,
complicating how their children were identified. As Epafras pointed
out, the dynamic of Jewish identity in the context Indonesian social
history was such that Jews could be Muslim, Christian, and local
people.
The appearance and disappearance of Jewish diaspora was
connected to the movement of people around the world during the
early period of globalization in the 19th century. Jewish groups
would disappear from one place, and then appear in another place,
demonstrating the dynamic nature
of these communities. For instance,
the Jews in Surabaya disappeared
after the destruction of their
synagogue, but then there is
evidence of their presence later in
Manado. Epafras noted that one of
the groups with the strongest
network was the Baghdadi Jews, and
h e p o i n t e d o u t t h a t t h e i r
relationships were restricted to other
Jews from Baghdad. This is
significant because it outlines how
difficult it is to categorize Jewish
identity, since many people cannot
differentiate between different
k i n d s o f J e w i s h i d e n t i t i e s .
Furthermore, in the colonial era,
while European Jews went to
internment camps, Asiatic Jews
escaped this fate due to their Asian
identity.
The discussion of Dr. Epafras's
research raised a number of
questions from the audience. For
instance , i f people ident i fy
themselves as Jews, will they be
received as Jews in Indonesia? His
response to this question was to
underline that we cannot see identity as fixed. From a rabbinical
perspective, people will be accepted as Jews if they are descendants
of Jews. However, in Israel, there is a traditional regulation that
states Jews must obey Jewish law. In 1948, a descendant of Jewish
parents would automatically be considered a Jew, but in 1956, this
regulation was revised so that only those who do not have a criminal
record would be recognized as Jewish. Epafras added that although
it is sometimes difficult to categorize who is a Jew, Jewish identity
has a solid basis. He noted that in Indonesia, there are “Judaized”
groups that are regarded as Jewish based on social perception. In
conclusion, he recapitulated that the Jews of Nusantara can be
identified both through their self-perception and in the context of
their position in society, as well as in relation to the wider public that
participates in the construction of their identity. (Leo)
Jewish Identity in the Historical Context Of Indonesia
th
05
It is difficult to separate Islam from politics. This is reflected in
the situation in some Muslim countries, such as Mali and Somalia
where violent struggles have shifted to periphery. In other regions,
revolutionary movements like the Arab Spring were hampered by
the politics of religion. On February 19, 2014, Dr. Andreas Radtke,
the political counsell or for the German Embassy in Jakarta,
discussed these issues of political Islam in global terms at the regular
Wednesday Forum lecture series hosted by CRCS and ICRS.
Dr. Radtke began the session with a number of questions
central to the issue of Islam and politics. First, he asked, what does
the call for an Islamic state really entail? Can the Salafi paradigm be
seen as more than a nostalgic illusion? What has become of the
traditional schools of law? What are the available alternatives that
make better use of established modes of “living Islam” compatible
with the modern form of the nation state? The idea of an Islamic
state is contested among Muslims. Radtke pointed out that the Arab
Spring was not originally motivated by the will to create an Islamic
State.
Discussing the situation in Indonesia, he addressed the case of
Aceh, a region that upholds Syariah law. “What does it mean if you
regulate what people can do and cannot do during Ramadan?” he
questioned. In his view, the idea of fasting comes from the al-Qur'an
and Sunnah, and refers to an act of the individual in relation to God.
Therefore, he asked whether, it would be better or worse for the state
to enforce the observation of this individual practice of worship.
Furthermore, Radtke explained that it is difficult to take an
example from history if we want to establish a so-called Islamic state.
Examining the development of Islamic rule throughout history
either under the Abbasid, Umayyad, or Fatimid Caliphas, we will
see that there was always a distinction between the realm of teaching
and passing on the body of syariah and what the state actually did.
However, he states that he does not see this paradigm among
reflected in the body of traditionalist Muslims in Indonesia who are
associated with the Nahdlatul Ulama organization. Referring to this
group as a kind of 'new' Islam, he stated that, “It is not a conservative
track in the sense that it does not conserve anything what is already
there. If you are a conservative Muslim in Indonesia, you will be
rooted to some traditional practices which are quite different from
that which I call the Salafi paradigm.”
Radtke argued that the attempt to establish Islamic state or
rule is making reference to the past that is more like an image of
political reality, a nostalgic image which in Christian terms is
analogous to an image of salvation history. “The moment when you
come into a political position to attempt the Islamic state is quite
difficult, because it is never meant to be implemented by a state” he
said. In his view, the issue with using established modes of Islam
compatible with the modern nation state is that Muslims practice
differently.
In response to a question raised by ICRS student Wakhit
Hasyim about the the definition of Salafism in the Indonesian
context and its relation to Wahabism, Dr. Radtke argued that the
term Salafi used to be understood by Indonesians as referring to salaf
as-Shalih. Wahabism, he added, is a part of established school of
Islamic law. Those practicing Wahabism have left Saudi Arabia
behind because in their view, the people running the religious
establishment there are not on the right path anymore. There are
other groups who hold similar radical views in terms of literalist
interpretations of the Qur'an who oppose them. “So I am unable to
use Wahabism in relation to the context of Indonesia,” he concluded.
Dr. Suhadi of CRCS asked whether is it possible for the Salafi
movement to be friendly towards democracy. Radtke explained
some have argued that the religious tradition of Islam has to be
accepted or rejected as a whole. “I have taken issue with that
sentence, because I do not know whether it is true or not. But there is
a lot of truth in it” he said. Then he explained furthermore that if we
read the Qur'an, hadith, or any other Islamic sources, we find that
Islam is a closed system that works very well. “In my view, it
includes legitimacy for violence and that is the question that the
Muslims community has to deal with,” he argued. Therefore, in his
opinion, radical groups are unable to be friends of democracy,
because the democratic system is based in non-violence.
Is it Necessary to Read Islam Politically?
No Date Presenter Institution Moderator Title Abstract Place
1. Feb 12, 2014 Leonard C.
Epafras, Ph.D
ICRS Reza Jews of Nusantara: Trajectories
of (received) Identity
in the course of
Indonesian History
SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
2.
3. Feb 26, 2014 Syaifuddin Zuhri UIN SUKA Franciscus On Haul of Balinese Muslim
Saints: Notes from the Field
- SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
4. March 5, 2014 Prof. Buckley
(Canada)
ICRS Uki - SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
6. March 19, 2014 No Wedforum - SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
Religion within the Public
Sphere in Multi-religious
Societies
5. March 12, 2014 Abdul Wahid Filsafat UGM Andri Handayani
Opium-related Problems
and the Limit of the
Colonial State
Authority, 1870-1930s
- SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
7. March 26, 2014 Jaye Starr ICRS Cherry
Agusta
Islam in America - UKDW
8. April 2, 2014 Rachmi Diyah
Larasati
University of
Minnesota, Twin
Cities,
Minneapolis
Aprilin Ritual, Dancing “Ecofeminism”
and Genealogy of Post Colonial
Thought.
SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
-
9. PEMILU Pemilu SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
10. April 16, 2014 Dr. Mornie Joy University of
Calgary, Canada
Uyun Reflecting on Women‘s Rights
and Religion in Today's World
-
11. April 23, 2014 Yulianti Mbak Jim The History of Buddhism
in Indonesia
- SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
12. April 30, 2014 Robert Daley The College of
Idaho
Lee (ICRS) Buddhist Fundamentalism
and Thailand’s Political
Crisis”
- SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
13. May 7, 2013 Jazilus Sahok Pondok Pesantren
Sunan Pandanaran,
University of
Malaya, Malaysia.
Fazlul Traditionalism and modernism
????
- SPs UGM 4th
floor, 406
Schedule of Wednesday Forum session 13, February 12 – May 2, 2014.
06
CRCS Seminar Course: Pious Publics and Accidental Pilgrims
In the fall semester of 2013, CRCS introduced a new elective course
focusing on the intersection of tourism and religion by Dr. Kelly Swazey.
“Pious Publics and Accidental Pilgrims” is a seminar course that examines
seminal theories in the study of pilgrimage, a label that has historically
been used to describe travel to religious sites. However, contemporary
religious sites may host not only visitors seeking spiritual connection, but
also function as historical centers or tourist attractions that act as
multivalent symbols for competing narratives about history, identity, and
religious practice. Even the designation of what constitutes a religious
space is increasingly contested as spiritual activities take place side by side
with secular concerns, and places designated as religious are
simultaneously marketed as destinations for both religious and non-
religious visitors.
By viewing these sites as hubs where tourists, visitors, pilgrims and
locals interact, this class draws from the anthropological study of tourism
to examine and question whether the categorical division between
pilgrimage and tourism is useful in examining places where differences
between the two may be difficult to distinguish. Considering how the
desires of pilgrims and tourists overlap in efforts to escape to places outside
of the ordinary provides a useful means of moving beyond the
sacred/secular binary, and allows us to consider how both activities are part
of the modern movements of people and capital. The class also highlights
how discourses and practices surrounding these sites are deployed in the
construction and contestation of normative definitions of religion,
processes central to the theoretical question of how religion is defined in
contemporary world.
Throughout the course, students considered the economic, social,
theological and political orientations that constitute meanings ascribed to
religious sites, examining ethnographic studies drawn from around the
world. Concentrating on themes such as the commodification of spiritual
sites and practices, the influence of state management, the politics of
heritage, and competing claims of ownership over particular sites,
discussion considered how the places profiled are embedded in larger
national and international contexts, situating them in conversation with
theories of globalization, identity, and the public mobilization of religion.
In their final projects, students discovered a wealth of places where
they could investigate these issues in the field, demonstrating how
contemporary religious sites are increasingly in contact with, and affected
by, flows of tourism. We heard about how Muslims, Christians, and other
religious adherents are praying alongside each other at the nationalist site
of former president Gus Dur's tomb, in hopes he will answer their requests.
We learned about how ritual practice around the Yogyakarta Keraton has
been adapted to be more amenable to foreign and domestic tourists.
Students analyzed how social media is used to market sites to religious
audiences, or conversely, to treat religious sites as objects of history or
architecture, ignoring the active religious life attached to them. In one
project, we learned that in the economies that serve visitors to religious
sites, ordinary products are imbued with spiritual power, increasing their
economic value. Overall, examining the relationship between religion and
tourism proved a useful means for examining not only religious life in Asia,
but also for a critical examination of the category of religion itself.
Following the recently completed research on the growth of
Pentacostalism in Indonesia, CRCS took part in the conference on
Christianity and Freedom: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives held
at the Pontifical Urbaniana University, December 13-14, 2013 in
Rome, Italy. The conference was part of the Religious Freedom
Project (RFP) at Georgetown University's Berkley Center for
Religion, Peace, and World Affairs.. The conference was attended by
a group of forty leading international scholars.
The focal point of the conference was the contribution of
Christians and Christian ideas to political, civic, economic, and
religious freedom historically and contemporarily. The two-day
conference began with welcoming remarks by Thomas F. Farr,
Director of the Religious Freedom Project at the Berkley Center for
Religion, Peace and World Affairs, Georgetown University. The
conference proceedings also included representatives of the Vatican,
as Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Vatican Secretariat of State,
was present at the conference venue to give his welcoming remarks,
and scholars received an invitation from the Vatican authority to
attend an audience with Pope Francis.
Discussion panels at the conference addressed issues such as
persecution, conversion, Christianity's relationship to freedom,
Christian vulnerability, Christian views on dignity, proselytism, and
democracy. The contemporary state of Christianity in Asia was
highlighted, with presentations on the situation in India, China,
Vietnam, and Indonesia. The Berkley Center of Georgetown
University in partnership with CRCS UGM addressed the
contemporary state of religious freedom in Indonesia, presenting
results from the research conducted by Dr. Zainal Abidin Bagir, Dr.
Robert Hefner and Marthen Tahun under the Religious Freedom
Project in Indonesia. The presentation was based on research in
Indonesia focusing on several aspects, including the comparison of
the situation of Indonesian Christians before and after the 1998
democratization and the main problems faced by Christians in
Indonesia today considering Christianity's relation with the state
and the Muslim majority. Given the fact that Indonesia is a pluralistic
society, the research also assesses religious freedom as a whole by
examining cases of other religious minority groups in Indonesia. All
of the panel is t ' s presentat ions can be accessed at
(Marthin)
http://berkleycenter.georgetown.edu/rfp/events/christianity-and-
freedom-historical-and-contemporary-perspectives
CRCS took part in the Conference on Christianity & Religious Freedom in Rome
The Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS) and the
Henry Luce Foundation are hosting a three-year collaborative
research project entitled “Religion, Public Policy, and Social
Transformation in Southeast Asia” in nine countries across
Southeast Asia, as well as in the United States. Several higher
education and research institutions are involved in this project.
The project will focus on three themes during the research
period. For the first year, the research theme is “Managing Religious
Diversity;” the second year will focus on “Religion, Identity and
Gender;” and the last year will address “Religion in the Public
Sphere.” Each institution will deal with these specific focuses in their
respective countries.
ICRS is undertaking research activities related to the first
research topic, “Managing Religious Diversity.” These activities
include two focus group discussions that were held in Makassar and
Yogyakarta in October of 2013, and one national workshop held in
Jakarta in January of 2014. All of the research activity for the first-
year cycle culminated in an International Conference that was held
in Yogyakarta on March 20, 2014. At the conference, researchers
from partner institutions and country representativesshared the
outcomesfrom their first year of research.
The one-day National Workshop was organized in
cooperation with the SugengSaryadi Syndicate (SSS). More than
thirty representatives of government institutions, NGOs, religious
organizations, and academic departments were in attendance.
Discussion focused on the topic of religion and public policy,
exploring governmental processes of assessment, and government
regulations pertaining to religious diversity, especially the intended
and unintended consequences of those regulations. Participants in
the workshop also addressed religion and social transformation,
theorizing about how the experience of inter-religious interaction in
Indonesia contributes to social change.
The workshop concluded with a talk show on the SSS Forum's
regular broadcast. The episode aired on the TVRI network on
February 17, 2014. The talk show was moderated by SoegengSarjadi
and also included Franz MagnisSuseno (Driyarkara School of
Philosophy), DickySofjan (ICRS), YudiLatif (Reform Institute), and
ZuhairiMisrawi (Moderate Muslim Society).
Indonesia is a pluralistic, multi-ethnic, multicultural, and
multi-religious nation, and this reality is reflected in the everyday
life of Indonesian society. Intensive encounters between different
cultural and religious groups allowpeople to transcend their
07
differences at times. However, these encounters are also
characterized by complicated modes of interaction that oscillate
between terse and smooth, discordant and harmonious, restive and
peaceful. The historical burden of colonialism, majority-minority
issues, and center-periphery relations are part of these complex
dynamics. In this regard, managing and governing diversity is a
challenging task. These social and political conditions have a
noticeable effect on the management of inter-religious relationships.
Theshift towards more intense politics of identity, and the politics of
sameness are apparent in increasing incidents of religious
intolerance. These incidents are symptoms of the complications of
managing diversity. The government, considered the most impartial
party within society, often fails to play the role of the arbiter between
diverse groups. However, other elements of also contribute to
thesedynamics. The workshop was meant to provide a space for
sharing information, opinions, analysis, social sentiments, and for
presenting a snapshot of the evolving state of inter-religious
relations in Indonesia. More information on the “Religion, Public
Policy and Social Transformation in Southeast Asia” project can be
accessed at:
National Workshop on Managing Diversity
From right to left: Zuhairi Misrawi, Dicky Sofjan, Soegeng Sarjadi, Franz Magnis Suseno,
and Yudi Latif.
Religious and Cross-cultural StudiesProgram Studi Agama dan Lintas Budaya
Graduate School, Universitas Gadjah MadaYogyakarta, Indonesia
MASTER’S (M.A.)MASTER’S (M.A.)PROGRAMPROGRAM
Linah Khairiyah Pary, M.A., M.Pd
Gedung Sekolah Pascasarjana, Lt. 3Jl. Teknika Utara, Pogung, Yogyakarta, Indonesia 55281Phone/Fax : +62 274 544976
Email : [email protected]
For further information, please contact:For further information, please contact:
Program Studi Agama dan Lintas Budaya
www.crcs.ugm.ac.idCenter for Religious and Cross-cultural Studies
Graduate School, Universitas Gadjah Mada
Registration:
April 3, 2014 – June 24, 2014
Available Scholarships: BPPs, DIKTIs, Ford Foundation,
United Board, IIEF, LPDP, and many more.
Registration:
April 3, 2014 – June 24, 2014
INTERNATIONAL PH.D. PROGRAMConsortium of:
Contact Us:UGM Graduate School, 3 FloorJl. Teknika Utara, Pogung, YogyakartaIndonesia, 55281Phone: 085643306667 / 0274-562570Email: [email protected]
www.icrs.ugm.ac.id
rd
http://sea-religion.org/
08
CRCS recently launched its new book entitled Agama di Indonesia dalam Angka: Dinamika Demografis
Berdasarkan Sensus Penduduk Tahun 2000 dan 2010 (Religion in Indonesia by Numbers: Demographic Dynamics
in the 2000 and 2010 censuses). The book, by Agus Indiyanto, marks the beginning of CRCS's new research
innitiative on religious demography in Indonesia. The book will be followed with extended and thematic
researches on the situation of religious demography in Indonesia. The book was launched in a public discussion
followed with a workshop jointly organized by CRCS and PUSAD; (Pusat Studi Agama dan Demokrasi/Center for
the Study of Religion and Democracy) of Paramadina University Jakarta. The launching and discussion for this
new publication was held at the Paramadina campus on February 5, 2014. Around one hundred people attended
the discussion by Ihsan Ali-Fauzi, researcher and chairperson of PUSAD, Evi Nurfidya Arifin, a statistician of
National University of Singapore; and Agus Indiyanto, the author. The morning's talk was moderated by Samsul
Ma'arif, and continued into the afternoon with a forum group discussion on the future of religious demography
research.
The book's author, Agus Indiyanto, stated that the book provides basic information about Indonesia's
religious composition and population growth rate in order to help readers understand the demographic characteristics of six Indonesian
provinces: Bali, DIY, Jawa Barat, Sulawesi Utara, Maluku and Nusa Tenggara Timur. Based on the data from the 2000 and 2010 censuses, it is
clear that even in provinces where a particular religious group is considered to be the majority, other religious groups are also growing
rapidly. Therefore, the panelists suggested that serious consideration of religious plurality should be part of the public policy making process.
They also agreed that people must be careful in their readings of religious demographic data, because the data can easily be manipulated to
serve political interests. Responding to the call for more collaborative research on religious demography in the future, Evi Nurfidya Arifin
commented that this publication provides a basic understanding of religious demography in Indonesia; therefore, future research could
expand the analysis to include variables such as migration, birth rate and mortality rate, economic status, and ethnicity, providing a more
comprehensive understanding about the country's religious demography.
It is commonly thought that democracy poses a challenge for managing religious
and cultural diversity. In an authoritarian state like Indonesia pre-1998, diversity is
managed by enforcing uniformity to an unacceptable level. Expressions of diversity are
strictly controlled. Management of diversity means reducing diversity. In contrast to the
post-Reformasi period in Indonesia, today universal human rights values are
normatively upheld, as the country has ratified a number of the basic tenets of the
universal human rights charter. Consequently, Indonesia is obliged to follow
international laws on human rights. This has not proved easy, however, as challenges
have emerged related to the processes of democratization and decentralization.
After fifteen years of decentralization (in the period continuing democratic
transition), civil society organizations have evolved, gaining greater influence in society.
Two books published by the Center for Religious and Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS) of
UGM's Graduate School address this development. Although their scope is still limited, these books serve as an instrument for evaluating and
improving advocacy activities in the promotion of diversity and religious freedom in Indonesia.
The first book addresses three topics. First, there is a brief history of diversity management in Indonesia (with a deeper discussion of
the period after the Reform era); second, key theories are proposed to analyze practices of diversity management; and finally, a presentation of
a broader picture of advocacy for diversity and religious freedom. In this book, Robert Hefner discusses the history of diversity management
in Indonesia, and proposes a perspective for understanding religious freedom issues beyond political secularism and liberalism. Evaluating
the focus on individual rights, Hefner proposes an argument for collective interest. This means religious freedom is seen as a requirement for
protecting and supporting different religious communities.
In Chapters Three and Four, Ihsan Ali-Fauzi makes several proposals. First, like Hefner, he discusses the view that democracy does
not necessarily require secularization. Democracy is considered to be compatible with religious aspirations in public life. Both Hefner and
Ihsan outline several important implications of this perspective for the practice of diversity management.
In Chapter Four, Ihsan elaborates how Indonesia is an arena for pluralism advocacy in the era of democratic transition. He identifies
different actors, allies, and critics of pluralism advocacy. This first book sets the historical and theoretical stage for the second book.
The second book in the series provides an in-depth reflection on the pluralism advocacy experience over the last few years, leading to a
discussion about the differences between power-based, rights-based and interest-based approaches in pluralism advocacy. This second book
closes by highlighting the various opinions of the writers. It also emphasizes several options available for developing pluralism and religious
freedom advocacy in Indonesia.
In addition to reflecting on the advocacy experience as a whole, the second book of the series also contains activists' reflections on their
personal advocacy experiences. These essays can be accessed at: http://crcs.ugm.ac.id/pluralism/pluralism-advocacy
CRCS Launches a new Book on Religious Demography in Indonesia
CRCS Book Series Sets a Framework for Reflection on Diversity Management and Religious Freedom Advocacy in Indonesia