ICC NOTE: Indonesian President Joko Widodo campaigned on promises of reform regarding his country’s human rights record and treatment of religious minorities. In the most populous Muslim nation in the world, religious tolerance has become something of an afterthought. During the first 11 months of 2015, 194 incidents of violent attacks on religious minorities occurred including the demolition of nine protestant churches in the Sharia ruled region of Aceh in November which stemmed from an arson attack on another church on October 13. Two church communities who were evicted from their property over six years ago remain without property and continue to hold services in front of President Widodo’s palace. To this date, the Indonesian President has attempted no substantive steps toward addressing religious persecution or human rights. 

1/27/2016 Jakarta, Indonesia (Jakarta Globe) – President Joko Widodo has made ambiguous and contradictory steps when keeping his campaign promises when it comes to tackling Indonesia’s human rights issues by making very few “concrete policy changes,” the Human Rights Watch said in its World Report 2016.

The report acknowledged that although the president made bold pledges to address issues, ranging from the protection of the country’s religious minorities to the gross human rights abuses of the past 50 years, the president did not follow through on these promises, allowing senior government officials to effectively defy his policies without any repercussions.

“Joko’s first year as president was a missed opportunity to adopt urgently needed human rights measures,” Phelim Kine, HRW deputy Asia director, said in a statement issued on Wednesday (27/1). “But there is still time for him to adjust his policy priorities to actively protect human rights rather than turn a blind eye to serious abuses.”

Empty promises

The president has also taken a firm stance against human rights advocates, this was especially the case when it came to his unwavering support for the death penalty which the HRW noted as a “serious backsliding on his reform agenda.”

Indonesia executed 14 convicted drug traffickers in 2015 — including a Brazilian who reportedly had severe mental disabilities — in the face of intense international criticism, the report continues.

Under Joko’s predecessor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesia had executed only 20 people in 10 years.

The Setara Institute, which keeps track of cases of religious intolerance, recorded 194 incidents of violent attacks on religious minorities in the first 11 months of 2015, including the forced demolition by officials and residents from Singkil district, Aceh, of nine Protestant churches in November, following the burning of a church by militant Islamists on Oct. 13.

To date, the president has not taken any recognizable steps to address the issue of religious intolerance.

In May, Joko lifted the archaic and draconian restrictions on foreign media access to Papua and granted clemency to five political prisoners. However, in practice, journalists continue to face restrictions from entering Papua.

Joko also failed to make good on his promise to thoroughly investigate and punish security forces involved in the December 2014 deaths of five peaceful protesters in Papua’s town of Enarotali. In addition, Joko to date has stayed mum on the issue of providing clemency for the 45 Papuans and 29 Maluku activists still imprisoned for peaceful advocacy of independence.

“The Joko government’s approach to human rights has been more rhetoric than reality, while serious rights abuses go unpunished,” Kine said. “Joko can and should take strong actions to advance justice and curtail abuses in 2016.”

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