This Element argues that after twenty years of democratization, Indonesia has performed admirably. This is especially so when the country's accomplishments are placed in comparative perspective. However, as we analytically focus more closely to inspect Indonesia's political regime, political economy, and how identity-based mobilizations have emerged, it is clear that Indonesia still has many challenges to overcome, some so pressing that they could potentially erode or reverse many of the democratic gains the country has achieved since its (...) former authoritarian ruler, Soeharto, was forced to resign in 1998. (shrink)

This paper will examine the various ways in which the regional imaginary has been conceptualized and developed in maritime Southeast Asia, primarily focussing on Indonesia. Utilizing the recent debate on the notion of a this paper examines the role of imperialism and the colonial experience on the development of Indonesian of region and regionalism. This paper is structured into four sections. First of all, it explores the link between postcolonial theory and regionalism studies. Second, it takes into account early (...) ideas of regionalism in the post-independence era. This includes President Sukarno's foreign policy culminating in Indonesia's hosting of the Bandung Conference as well as President Suharto's endorsement of ASEAN. The third and final section examines Indonesia's foreign policy orientation and practices in the post-authoritarian period, particularly under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. With its embrace of democracy in the post-New Order era, the concluding discussion suggests that Indonesia appears to be increasingly prepared to expand its regional engagement concentrically beyond the immediate Southeast Asian region. The question of the role of the US is instrumental in this regard, and can be usefully understood from a postcolonial framework. (shrink)

Las vinculaciones con Indonesia se han caracterizado por el bajo perfil político y la inestabilidad en el plano comercial desde finales de los noventas hasta mediados de 2000. Sin embargo, desde 2008 en adelante, Indonesia se convirtió en el principal destino de las exportaciones argentinas en el SEA y comenzó a despertar un mayor interés en el plano político-diplomático. La visita del Canciller Timmerman y la implementación de otras iniciativas bilaterales se convirtieron en indicadores del emergente protagonismo de (...) Indonesia en la agenda argentina hacia el Este de Asia. Los lazos políticos y económicos se complementan con el surgimiento de iniciativas culturales que favorecen el mayor acercamiento entre ambos Estados. A su vez, la interacción en foros multilaterales –como FOCALAE- y la creación de dos grupos parlamentarios argentinos –de Amistad con ASEAN y de Amistad con Indonesia- se constituyeron en herramientas para fomentar el mutuo conocimiento. Dados los recientes desarrollos en las vinculaciones bilaterales y la consolidación de Indonesia como socio comercial de la Argentina, nos proponemos en este artículo realizar un abordaje de las relaciones entre ambos Estados desde las dimensiones económico-comercial, político-diplomática y cultural. (shrink)

The article described at first conceptual of halal tourism which is based on Islamic Shariah. Second, analyses of halal tourism effectiveness practically. Third, research of Indonesia as biggest Muslim populations in the world provide and serve halal tourism. To research this thing authors used a descriptive analytical research method coupled with literacy techniques. As a summary that halal tourism is growing fast in Indonesia with some special advantages and efforts actually. Evidently, Indonesia has been selected as the (...) best halal tourism in the world by 2019 and the trend of increasing visitors especially from middle east whom mostly Muslim’s travelers to the country. The implications of the research are found relatively new development of halal tourism conceptually and the implications in promoting halal tourism, serving Muslims community to get satisfactions in tourism without deny their belief, halal tourism is a health tourism that provide only foods, beverages and healthy advertisement and also green tourism that secure environment practically. Practical implications there are first, promote halal tourism. Second, serve Muslims community to get satisfactions in tourism without deny their belief and Islamic tennets. Third, halal tourism is a health tourism that provide only foods, beverages and healthy advertisement and green tourism that secure environment. The article is original as a result of a research in international issue that concern of halal tourism which service tourists specially for Muslims, and also offers new platform in tourism business. (shrink)

How democratic is contemporary Indonesia? While analysts differ, Indonesian citizens, when asked in systematic public opinion surveys conducted regularly by the authors since 1999, consistently express strong support for democratic principles and also believe that their country's democratic performance is high. Support for democratic performance is highly correlated with support for government performance, as measured by perceptions of the condition of the national economy and political system. At the same time, higher levels of education and income, in Indonesia (...) as in other countries, have created a considerable number of critical citizens, that is, citizens who value democracy but are critical of its performance. On our evidence for Indonesia, it is members of this group who are the most motivated and best prepared to demand a higher level of democratic performance from their elected officials. (shrink)

Decolonization created new opportunities for international scientific research collaboration. In Indonesia this began in the late 1940s, as Indonesian scientists and officials sought to remake the formerly colonial botanical gardens in the city of Bogor into an international research center. Indonesia sponsored the Flora Malesiana project, a flora of all of island Southeast Asia. This project was formally centered in Bogor, Indonesia, with participation from tropical botanists from around the world. The international orientation of Indonesian science led (...) to the establishment of one of UNESCO’s Field Science Co-operation Offices in Jakarta, and to a period of close collaboration between Indonesian botanists and UNESCO. This paper examines the importance of UNESCO’s Humid Tropics research program, which initially provided further opportunities for Indonesian botanists to participate in international scientific networks. The paper concludes by showing that the Humid Tropics program led to the slow erosion of Indonesian agency and authority over tropical botany, and the assertion of Western control and management over tropical botany research. (shrink)

Plagiarism is viewed as a critical issue that can hinder the development of creativity and innovation in Indonesia. Thus, since the early 2000s the Indonesian government has endeavoured to develop policies to address this issue. In response to national policy, Indonesian educational institutions have made serious institutional efforts to address the plagiarism issue. Research in the Indonesian Higher education context on plagiarism has focussed on reporting prevention and mitigation efforts. However, little has been discussed about the communication of these (...) efforts in policy across the different institutional levels of Indonesian Higher Education. This study aims at exploring the anti-plagiarism efforts by determining the main features (or discourses) reflected in plagiarism policy in Indonesian HE from national to institutional level. Two web-based resources namely the official website of The General Directorate of Research, Technology and Higher Education (retrieved 2015), and the website of Bandung Institute of Technology (retrieved 2015) were used to ascertain the most appropriate policies to include in the study. Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) was used to reach explanatory understanding of how the policies (discursive events) demonstrate through their linguistic repetitions and other forms intertextuality, their relative positions within the Indonesian Higher Education institutional hierarchy and consequently provide some insight into the social practices and understandings of plagiarism underlying the creation of the documents. This study revealed that perhaps because of the rigid boundaries and hierarchies represented between the documents, the university policy does not show much transformation from the documents at a Ministry level, hence the definition of plagiarism remains broad and the levels of plagiarism and sanctions for plagiarism remain undefined. This can potentially lead to inconsistencies in developing effective practices preventing plagiarism. (shrink)

The literature on the construction of places of worship has predominantly shown difficulties, rejection and disharmony among religious communities. This study aims to describe and analyzed the success story of the construction of the Santa Monica church in Tangerang. This is a qualitative study conducted over a month-long period using primary and secondary data. Primary data were obtained through observation and interviews, while secondary data were obtained through formal and informal policy reviews available online. The informants involved in this study (...) amounted to eight people consisting of church leaders and administrators, local leaders, religious leaders, religious organizations and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Data were analyzed using content analysis methods. The results of the study show that the ability of church leaders and administrators to build good social and cultural relations with the community was a key element in their success in obtaining permission to build the church. This was achieved through effective communication, dialogue and cooperation between the Catholic community, leaders and the predominantly Islamic local community. Active involvement in daily activities had a positive impact, fostering mutual trust and peaceful coexistence, ultimately resulting in the local community’s support and approval for the establishment of the place of worship. Thus, the church construction committee was able to meet all administrative requirements as stipulated by government regulations. This study recommends the importance of good social and cultural relations as the fundamental basis and determinant of success for religious communities seeking to construct places of worship.Contribution: This article contributes to the goal of HTS Theological Studies in promoting the transdisciplinary aspect of religious studies in the international theological arena, particularly in the study of religious harmony among communities in Indonesia. (shrink)

Indonesia's Islamic organizations sustain the country's thriving civil society, democracy, and reputation for tolerance amid diversity. Yet scholars poorly understand how these organizations envision the accommodation of religious difference. What does tolerance mean to the world's largest Islamic organizations? What are the implications for democracy in Indonesia and the broader Muslim world? Jeremy Menchik argues that answering these questions requires decoupling tolerance from liberalism and investigating the historical and political conditions that engender democratic values. Drawing on archival documents, (...) ethnographic observation, comparative political theory, and an original survey, Islam and Democracy in Indonesia demonstrates that Indonesia's Muslim leaders favor a democracy in which individual rights and group-differentiated rights converge within a system of legal pluralism, a vision at odds with American-style secular government but common in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe. (shrink)

Critics on Christianization in Indonesia through a religious comparison between Islam and Christian from a Muslim convert viewpoints.

The RSPO and RTRS are global private partnerships that have been set up by business and civil society actors from the North to curb de-forestation and to promote sustainable production of palm oil or soy in the South. This article is about the launch of new national standards in Indonesia and Brazil that are look-alikes of the global standards but have been set up and supported by government or business actors from the South. The two main questions of this (...) article are: do the new national standards in Indonesia and Brazil provide a fundamental challenge to the RSPO and RTRS, or do they demonstrate the successful diffusion and adoption of global private rules into national contexts? Do the new national standards help or undermine the RSPO and RTRS in their efforts to reduce de-forestation? Combining the theoretical notions of proto-institution and rival governance network, a comparative analysis is offered of the launch of the new national standards in Indonesia and Brazil. The conclusion is that, whilst the RSPO and RTRS have served as models for the general design and principles of the national standards, they really differ from the global standards in terms of normative contents: the national standards offer more room to palm oil plantations and large-scale soy producers to expand production at the expense of forests and other high conservation areas. Governments and producer associations in Indonesia and Brazil have not launched national standards to implement the RSPO or RTRS but to challenge these interventions from the North. (shrink)

This article highlights the role of Majelis Ulama Indonesia in making anti-pluralism discourse and practice which are evident in its fatwa on belief . It begins with the explanation of MUI which in the first three decades of its establishment was a fatwa body that supported pluralism, but since the downfall of the authoritarian Suharto regime in 1998, has changed its position from supporter to detractor of pluralism. This article argues that the institutionalization of anti- pluralism discourse through the (...) MUI fatwa creates complexity especially because Indonesia contains the idea of pluralism in its constitution. The situation becomes more complex when the state and also Muslim organizations strengthen the position of MUI in monopolizing fatwa-making on ‘aqīda issues. The monopolization of fatwa on Islamic belief issues creates such a negative impact for religious freedom in Indonesia due to its fundamental characteristics that allow only a single judgment for the Muslim communities in understanding and interpreting their Islamic belief. Finally this article concludes the importance of Indonesia for protecting pluralism for maintaining the diversity of cultures and religions in this country. (shrink)

This study aims to discuss the historiography of standing up Maḥallu al-Qiyām in the cultural expression in Indonesia. This research is classified as qualitative research with a historical approach method reinforced with documentation, interview and observation. To deepen the meaning of Maḥallu al-Qiyām using analysis using the symbolic interpretive theory of Clifford Geertz. Interestingly, the tradition of Maḥallu al-Qiyām becomes a symbolic meaning of the expression of homage to the Prophet Muhammad and has the content of Maḥabbah teachings to (...) the Prophet. This research concluded that standing up Maḥallu al-Qiyām began when Sheikh Tajuddin as-Subkhi started his stand while reading the Prophet’s Mawlīd as a symbol of respect for the Prophet Muhammad. The Maḥallu al-Qiyām has various forms of celebration as a cultural expression in Indonesia, manifested in various forms of celebration in Javanese cultures, such as muludan, srakalan, kekahan, temu manten, manakiban, sema’an al-Qur’an, and respect for newly arrived ulama.Contribution: This article has contributed to discovering the traditions that developed in Indonesia, which intersected with Maḥallu al-Qiyām, thus identifying some expressions of Javanese culture in whose dialectic with standing Maḥallu al-Qiyām. (shrink)

Islam and Politics in Indonesia: The Masyumi Party between Democracy and Integralism By MadinierRémy, translated by DesmondJeremy, xx + 484 pp. Price PB $40.00. EAN 978–9971698430.

Sahih al-Bukhari, one of the most esteemed and widely studied collections of hadith by Muslims, has garnered significant attention in Indonesia. This paper delves into the history of Sahih al-Bukhari's study within the Indonesian context, examining its transmission lineage, vernacularization, and study methodologies in traditional and contemporary educational context. Three specific objectives were pursued: 1) the translation and vernacularization of Sahih al-Bukhari, 2) the transmission of Sahih al-Bukhari, with a focus on Indonesian pesantren (Islamic boarding schools), and 3) the (...) analysis of Sahih al-Bukhari study methods within Islamic colleges. Employing a historical method and an analytical approach, this research underscores the importance of translating and rendering Sahih al-Bukhari into vernacular languages as an initial step in making this revered text accessible. The study forms and institutions involved in Sahih al-Bukhari education were categorized into two primary streams: pesantren and Islamic higher education institutions. While pesantren encompass introductory courses, memorization programs, and more practical approaches, Islamic higher education institutions offer diverse and contemporary methods, including thematic, comparative, critical, living, and understanding studies. This study provides a comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted nature of Sahih al-Bukhari studies in Indonesia. By investigating its historical development, translation efforts, and the unique study methodologies within different educational settings, it sheds light on the diverse ways in which Sahih al-Bukhari is approached and understood in the Indonesian context. (shrink)

Criticism of the medical system in Indonesia; collection of articles.

The social acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) is recently widely debated. Although some Western countries have taken a more favourable course towards these minority groups, we still see a certain level of resistance to same sex marriage and discrimination against LGBT even in normally regarded liberal societies. Islam, which is often believed to clash with so-called Western values, regards LGBT as abhorrent and even apostate. However, we see a new endeavour of LGBT people in the most Muslim populous (...) country in the world, Indonesia. This paper explores the treatment of these minorities in Islam, including the possibility of co-existence of all humans in a future. For this purpose, we consider the activities of this Islamic school in Indonesia and the life history of the students. We also examine both the pro and con of the religious standpoint of the ulamas. We especially pay attention to some of the ulama’s attempts to create a new fiqh (a legal standard for religious rituals and obligations) to accept LGBT. (shrink)

The belief system of academicians has an impact on how religious education (RE) is carried out in public universities. The ideology of RE lecturers - whether it is moderate, radical, or liberal - is greatly influenced by their own religious beliefs. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between religious paradigm of religious education lecturers on interreligious tolerance and pluralism in public universities in Indonesia. The study sample comprised 142 lecturers drawn from ten public universities in (...) Indonesia. A mixed method research design guided this study, where qualitative data was used to reinforce or clarify the findings from the quantitative data. The data was statistically assessed using the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U-test to reveal whether the demographic profiles of RE lecturers was related to their religious paradigm regarding the relationship between religion-state, inter-religious relations and intra-religious relations. The study's findings indicate that the lecturer's personal beliefs about religion affect their opinions on the relationship between the state and religion, as well as the relationships within religious groups. Moreover, religious educators have a middling level of comprehension of their religious paradigm. To promote understanding and harmony among the academic community, it is suggested that a platform for religious moderation be established at public colleges where educators and students of various religions can converse and resolve fundamentalism. (shrink)

This research explores the concept of religious universalism and its potential impact on expressions of Islamic devotion within Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. The study aims to investigate how Islamic practices and beliefs can serve as a deterrent against the proliferation of religious extremism. By examining various dimensions of Islamic religiosity in these countries, this research seeks to uncover the ways in which a broad and inclusive interpretation of religion can contribute to countering the influence of radical ideologies. Through an (...) analysis of religious rituals, educational frameworks, and cross-faith engagements, this study offers insights into the capacity of religious universalism to mitigate the advancement of religious extremism across diverse cultural and social contexts. Contribution: This research enhances our understanding of how universality of religion can serve as a deterrent against religious extremism by examining its manifestations within the contexts of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand. The findings offer practical insights and recommendations that can inform policies and initiatives aimed at fostering tolerance, inclusivity, and harmony within diverse religious societies. (shrink)

This article is concerned with the environmental conservation efforts that respond to the human race’s ecological crisis. It does this by looking at Sufistic-based environmental conservation at the pesantren of ath-Taariq in West Java, Indonesia. Data were obtained through interviews, observation and documentation using qualitative methods. Two findings were yielded; firstly, environmental conservation practices taught to students include ecology teaching, producing plant seeds and recycling waste into organic fertiliser. Secondly, significant steps have been taken by the establishment for reforestation (...) and nature conservation motivated by Sufi values and doctrines, including the concept of zuhud [asceticism] and gratitude, kinship and mutual assistance, love and blessing, as well as tafakkur [contemplation]. Contribution: This article helps develop studies of Sufism and environmental conservation. It offers a new direction for the teaching and learning of contemporary Sufism that all Islamic educational institutions could adopt. (shrink)

Islam and Citizenship in Indonesia examines the conditions facilitating democracy, women's rights, and inclusive citizenship in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim majority country and the third largest democracy in the world. The book shows that Muslim understandings of Islamic traditions and ethics have co-evolved with the understanding and practice of democracy and citizen belonging. Following 32 years of authoritarian rule, in 1998 this sprawling Southeast Asian country returned to electoral democracy. The achievement brought with it, however, an upsurge (...) in both the numbers and assertiveness of Islamist militias, as well as a sharp increase in violence against religious minorities. The resulting mobilizations have pitted the Muslim supporters of an Indonesian variety of inclusive citizenship against populist proponents of Islamist majoritarianism. Seen from this historical example, the book demonstrates that Muslim actors come to know and practice Islam in a manner, not determined in an unchanging way by scriptural commands, but in co-evolution with broader currents in politics, society, and citizen belonging. By exploring these questions in both an Indonesian and comparative context, this book offers important lessons on the challenge of democracy and inclusive citizenship in the Muslim-majority world. Well written and informative, this book will be suitable for adoption in university courses on Islam, Southeast Asian Politics, Indonesian and Asian Studies, as well as courses dealing with religion, democracy, and citizen belonging in multicultural societies around the world. The book will be of interest to the general reader with an interest in Islam, citizenship, and democracy. (shrink)

The article investigates the development of discourses related to freedom of religion and discrimination against religious minority in current Indonesia by identifying the discourse constructions of Ahmadiyya in various texts and talks produced and disseminated by government institution and the Indonesian Council of Ulama (the MUI). This study aims to reveal these institutions’ views and perspectives on Ahmadiyya issue using various discourse strategies. The data analysed are some legal proclamations issued and personal views delivered by the officials of these (...) two institutions. The CDA theoretical framework employed is to examine the positive-self and negative-other presentations. The finding reveals that the issue of Ahmadiyya is addressed through discourses related to Indonesian national interest and discourses related to religious matters. in these discourses, the two institutions and their officials present themselves positively and portray the Ahmadiyya sect negatively. The sect followers are negatively presented as the troublemaker, blasphemer, and the destroyer of religious harmony and social order. (shrink)

Account of teachers' experiences in developing the competency and professionalism in Indonesia; collection of articles.

This research aimed to show the political stance of the Muslim majority represented by the Ministry of Religious Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia (MoRA RI) towards non-Muslim leadership through the translation of the Qur’an. It examined the differences in the translation of the Qur’an based on the theory of translation as a political act. A total of 19 phrases or collocated words ittahaza awliya were found in the corpus of the Qur’an. The researchers approached the study with a (...) critical discourse analysis approach, and conducted contrastive analysis on translations of these collocated words in four editions of translations of the Qur’an published officially by MoRA RI from 1965 to 2019. The results proved that interference in translation of the collocation ittaḥaẓa awliya is caused by the influence of the source text, and that the political situation and ideology influenced the translation of the Qur’an in Indonesia. The political direction of the Indonesian government, especially MoRA RI, tended to provide more opportunities for non-Muslims to become leaders today, as seen in the 2019 edition. While the translation edition published before tended to close the possibility of non-Muslims becoming leaders. This finding shows the government’s stance on democracy for non-Muslims, which according to previous research findings has declined with the rise of Islamic populism in Indonesia.Contribution: This article provides an explanation of one side of the difficulty of translating collocation [ittaḥaẓa awliya] in the Qur’an and at the same time shows the political direction of the government of the Republic of Indonesia regarding the politics of non-Muslim leadership. (shrink)

Various studies on the impact of religiousness on consumer ethics have produced mixed results and suggested further clarification on the issue. Therefore, this article examines the effect of religiousness, materialism, and long-term orientation on consumer ethics in Indonesia. The results from 356 respondents in Indonesia, the largest Muslim population in the world, showed that intrinsic religiousness positively affected consumer ethics, while extrinsic social religiousness negatively affected consumer ethics. However, extrinsic personal religiousness did not affect consumer ethical beliefs dimensions. (...) Unlike other studies in developed countries, materialism and long-term orientation influenced only a few of the consumer ethical beliefs dimensions in this study. To date, the study is one of the first empirical studies to explore the impact of religiousness on consumer ethics in Indonesia. The study contributes to the debate on the impact of religiousness on consumer ethics and can assist managers and public policymakers in their effort to mitigate unethical consumer activities in Indonesia. (shrink)

This research explains the comparison of regulations on mosque loudspeakers between Indonesia and Muslim countries in the world. Guidelines for the use of mosque loudspeakers in Indonesia are regulated in the Instruction of the Director-General of Islamic Community Guidance at the Ministry of Religious Affairs Number 101 of 1978 concerning Guidance on the Use of Loudspeakers in Mosques and Musala and the Circular Letter of the Minister of Religion Number 5 of 2022 concerning Guidelines for the Use of (...) Loudspeakers in Mosques and Musala. Primary data of this study includes the 1978 Instructions and the 2022 Circular Letters. Secondary data is obtained from relevant literature sources and regulations on the use of mosque loudspeakers in several Muslim countries in the world, namely Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Malaysia. This research finds the concept of moderation of regulations on mosque loudspeakers in Indonesia. The findings of this research can be used as a guide model for drafting the contents of mosque loudspeaker regulations in several Muslim countries around the world by relying on three moderate aspects regarding the rules of time (public morals), volume (public health), and sound quality of mosque loudspeakers (public convenience). (shrink)