Pseudo-tolerance in Worship

The police named four suspects on suspicion of provocation and violence when they wanted to break up prayer activities in South Tangerang.

KOMPAS/AGUIDO ADRI

Farhan Rizky (22), a resident in one of the boarding houses in Kampung Poncol, Babakan, Setu, South Tangerang, Banten, was injured while trying to break up a dispute between boarding house residents and local residents, on Monday (6/5/2024).

There is still a steep road to be taken in implementing the values ​​of tolerance in Indonesia. One of the issues of tolerance that arises most frequently is freedom of religion and belief, including in carrying out worship.

The rules regarding the right to religious freedom have long been included in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). It states, "Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion." In addition to Pancasila, Indonesia has translated this value into the right to "freely embrace religion and worship according to one's religion" in Article 28E Paragraph (1) and Article 29 Paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution.

When it comes to discussing tolerance, religious harmony, and building a culture of respecting differences, survey results and index scores from institutions show fairly good results. For example, the trend of Indonesia's Democracy Index from the Central Statistics Agency, particularly in the variable of "freedom of belief," is always above 80 (good and very good). The highest score was in 2019 with an index score of 90.67 and the latest in 2020 became 86.57.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs' research center also conducted a similar assessment. In the Interfaith Harmony Index (KUB) 2023, for example, the national score reached 76.02 in the high category. However, the tolerance indicator scored 74.47, while the cooperation indicator scored 76.00 and the equality indicator scored 77.61 points.

However, the findings mentioned above sometimes encounter irony in the practice of community life in the field. Recently, the uproar between residents and some Catholic students of Pamulang University (Unpam) in RT 007 RW 002, Poncol Village, Babakan District, Setu, South Tangerang City, Banten, was covered by the issue of freedom of religion. Following the incident, the police and local residents issued a similar statement, stating that the riot was not caused by a ban on worship in boarding houses.

Outside of the ongoing investigation by the police, this phenomenon is like the tip of an iceberg. Cases of disruptions to worship still occur repeatedly. The Setara Institute report notes that there were 573 disruptions to worship and places of worship between 2017 and 2022. These disturbances include the dissolution and rejection of worship activities, the rejection of places of worship, intimidation, destruction, arson, and so on.

According to a press release from the Setara Institute on May 7, 2024, the case of the dissolution of the rosary prayer service for students in South Tangerang shows that intolerance and hatred continue to pose a threat to the right to freedom of religion and belief, which must be constitutionally guaranteed by the state and government.

There are two main factors that encourage dissolution, namely intolerance among society and the failure of state elements, in this context RT/RW as elements of the state at the smallest level, in the realm of society to guarantee the rights of all citizens on freedom of religion and belief.

The police's readiness to reconcile the situation and engage in mediation efforts should be appreciated together. However, the police need to ensure the existence of alleged non-criminal incidents that occurred. Law enforcement on cases of persecution is important to prevent the expansion of persecution and violations of freedom of religion and belief.

KOMPAS/AGUIDO ADRI

The Chairman of RW 002 Marat (brown shirt) communicated with the police and occupants of a boarding house in RT 007/RW 002, Kampung Poncol, Babakan Village, Setu Sub-district, South Tangerang City, Banten on Monday afternoon (May 6, 2024). The communication went smoothly and the atmosphere was conducive.

Building an ecosystem of tolerance

The ongoing violations of freedom of religion and belief is an irony in the implementation of tolerance values in Indonesia. This irony can be called pseudo-tolerance or tolerance that only appears on the surface, and hides the fragility of those values in community living.

Indeed, this term is more commonly used in the field of pharmacy to refer to the body's tolerance to the analgesic effects of opioids during therapy. As a result, patients show indications of an increase in dosage requirement that is not a true tolerance.

In The Friendly Philosopher, Letters and Talks on Theosophy and the Theosophical Life (1934), Robert Crosbie describes pseudo-toleranceas the idea of ​​false brotherhood and considers the problem of tolerance to be good. fine. Now, the phenomenon of pseudo-tolerance is unconsciously celebrated in mass and social media by highlighting inspirational stories about tolerance, but seems reluctant to delve deeper into incidents of intolerance.

All citizens are entitled to freedom of religion and are protected by the constitution. Respect for the beliefs and freedoms of others has a universal value that is greater than any dogma. Therefore, in cases of freedom of religion and belief, views that marginalize minority religious followers actually reduce the acute problem of intolerance that has been going on for so long.

To eradicate the practice of intolerance, the Setara Institute suggests that the Interfaith Communication Forum (FKUB) can play a more intense role in expanding the campaign for tolerance and increasing spaces for cross-religious meetings.

In addition, FKUB should also do more mitigation and conflict resolution that disturbs interreligious harmony. This includes mediation and resolution in cases of rejection of worship and the establishment of places and houses of worship.

The Setara Institute also encourages efforts to build a tolerance ecosystem from all parties. This tolerance ecosystem must be initiated by political leadership, with mayors and all political leaders giving attention to the agenda of promoting tolerance. In addition, initiatives and leadership from the bureaucracy are needed, including at the level of sub-districts and community units (RT/RW).

Moreover, ecosystem development also requires social initiative and leadership. All related elements of society, both in the form of official entities such as FKUB, the National Integration Forum (FPK), and religious councils, as well as social communities in various fields such as traditional culture and the arts, must be involved in the development of a tolerant ecosystem.

Also read: Four Residents, Including the RT Head, Become Suspects of Provocation and Violence in South Tangerang

At the grassroots level, intolerance can be slowly reduced by prioritizing egalitarian dialogue. The use of terms that dichotomize between the majority and minority in terms of religion and beliefs is a matter that needs to be further examined.

Meaning, if there is no principle of egalitarianism in ideology (understanding) and religious status (no majority-minority), then the problem of tolerance will continue to be encountered in the future. (LITBANG KOMPAS)

Also read: Singkawang is the most tolerant city, Surakarta falls to 10th place