Politics of Religion

A kinder, more gentle FPI?
The historically hardline defenders of Islam plan to enter the political mainstream by softening their rhetoric and abandoning hate speech
Blasphemy on the rise
As blasphemy convictions increase in this democratic era, election campaigning indicates little will change
Sectarianism, culture and politics
An emerging conservative Muslim coalition is a force to be reckoned with in Indonesian politics
Two Acehnese young women hold up colourful protest signs demanding justice for past human rights violations.
Aceh’s Commission for Truth and Reconciliation has an important, though delicate, mission ahead
Speakers address Wahdah Islamiyah's members at the third 'muktamar' (congress) in Jakarta, July 2016. (Imam S/Kiblat.Net)
Organisations like Wahdah Islamiyah envision an ‘Islamic’ citizenship for Indonesia
A mosque in Sidikalang, a town in North Sumatra just across the border from Aceh Singkil - Daniel Andrew Birchok
Aceh Singkil’s recent church burning may reflect common ways Indonesians have linked religion and region
Bridging the divide after conflict
A recent visit to Ambon shows that trade is helping to bridge the divide in a religiously segregated society
Stopping intolerance
Government must act to halt growing discrimination against minorities
What gives rise to moral outrage?
Rather than being merely the result of religious extremism, recent cases of moral outrage point to a wide range of current political and social problems
For the good of the people?
The challenges of governing ‘societal organisations’ pose difficult questions for Indonesian democracy
Convenient thugs
FPI thrives when mainstream Muslim groups remain silent
Front stage with the PKS
At its upmarket congress, Indonesia’s biggest Islamic party tried but failed to convince it has become an open and inclusive party
Praying across borders
Doctrinal borders that divide traditionalist and modernist Muslims in Banjarmasin are breaking down, but slowly
Supporting syariah, advancing women
The life and work of an Islamic teacher in Aceh shows that the struggle for gender equality is about much more than syariah.
New leadership, new policies?
The Nahdlatul Ulama congress in Makassar arrests the slide away from liberal views but shows the organisation's vulnerability to outside political interference
God and democracy
A Christian church is asserting its democratic rights by suing the mayor of Depok
Inside the Laskar Jihad
From the Archives Greg Fealy (ii65: Jan-Mar 2001) interviews the leader of a new, radical and militant sect
Killing for God
When Nahdlatul Ulama members killed communists, they believed they were doing it for God

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