Churches in West Java Being Shut Down by Radicals

The Christian Human rights group, Jubilee Campaign have recently reported that Churches in West Java, Indonesia are being shut down by a radical Islamic Group. Over last weekend, the Members of the Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI), an organisation of Muslim Clerics supported financially by the Indonesian government, entered eight churches during worship services, and ordered them closed.

The move follows the issuing of eleven fatwas, or religious rulings, by the MUI. It is widely regarded that the issuing of the fatwas, which included the condemning of any religous teaching 'influenced by pluralism, liberalism and secularism' has directed the majority Muslim population against all other faiths. Since the issuing of the fatwas at the end of July thirty-five churches have now been shut in West Java.

The escalation in this church closing campaign is also being linked to the ongoing trial of three Christian women who ran an after-school program called 'Cheerful Sunday' in the Indramayu district of West Java. They are accused of 'enticing Muslim children to convert to Christianity'.

A spokesperson for Jubilee Campaign made the following comment regarding the court case:

"The court case is widely seen in the Indonesian Christian community as a test case which, if it results in a guilty verdict, will set a dangerous precedent. It is the first case to be tried under the Child Protection Act of 2003. If the three women are found guilty, any Christian working with Muslim children in any capacity anywhere in Indonesia could be liable to charges of Christianization. Others, however, see the case as a mere smokescreen to draw attention away from the real agenda of the MUI: the closing of Christian churches and the imposition of Sharia law."

So far, an Anglican, a Presbyterian, an Assemblies of God, a Pentecostal and three other Protestant congregations have been affected. Two days prior to the event, the MUI also closed down a Tabernacle of David Church and a Christian-run Kindergarten in Turwakarta, and possibly eight other churches have been targeted.

It is suggested that the MUI are acting as a Mafia style organisation within West Java, as their influence is pervasive throughout Indonesia. Jubliee Campaign reports that the MUI are responsible for influencing the Muslim community leaders into refusing planning permission for these Churches, allowing the MUI to enter in and sign their closure.

When former Indonesian President Gus Dur recently wrote a letter to the police of Hargeulis, Indramayu, West Java, to protest the miscarriage of justice in the case of the three women, the response came not from the police but from the local MUI.

Jubilee Campaign says that it decries the contamination of justice in the Indramayu case and the closing of churches.

Of the court case, Jubilee Director Ann Buwalda said, "This legal precedent [in the event of a guilty verdict] will affect any religious minority and create chaos and discord nationwide for any Christian who happens to give out treats to children in a Christian neighborhood and a Muslim child happens to be among the recipients. It will erode the fabric of civility in the society, since any generosity can be construed as an 'enticement' and lead to the jailing and conviction of the Christian giver."

Buwalda further stated, "The prosecution of the three women has emboldened the Islamists. A guilty verdict threatens freedom of assembly and freedom of religion and even the act of being nice to someone of another religious faith."

She declared that the Indonesian government needs to be pressured to refuse further funding to the MUI as long as they pursue policies that restrict the human and civil rights of religious minorities.