A very beautiful chapter which explains clearly that you are free to choose which ever path you desire, so you should neither force a Muslim to worship what you worship; likewise a Muslim should not force his beliefs upon you. The best example must be the example of our beloved Prophet s.
The Holy Prophet Muhammad s. He did not simply demand religious tolerance of his followers; but he laid down the foundations to provide legal and constitutional protections for religious minorities. When the Holy Prophet s. In Medina were not only Muslims, but there was three Jewish tribes and other Arabs who had not accepted Islam. The Holy Prophet s.
To achieve this he made a formal agreement, known as the Charter of Medina in A. We should also bear in mind that this Charter of Medina pre-dated the English Magna Carta by almost six centuries. A formal agreement between Prophet Muhammad s. The Charter consists of 47 clauses which set forth the formation of a sovereign nation-state with a common citizenship for all communities.
The Charter protects fundamental human rights for all citizens, including equality, cooperation, freedom of conscience and freedom of religion.
Clause 25 specifically states that Jews and non-Muslim Arabs are entitled to practice their own faith without any restrictions. In short, this was the first document in history to establish religious freedom as a fundamental constitutional right.
One such letter was written to the monks of St. Verily I, the servants, the helpers, and my followers defend them, because Christians are my citizens; and by Allah! I hold out against anything that displeases them. No compulsion is to be on them. Neither are their judges to be removed from their jobs nor their monks from their monasteries.
Verily, they are my allies and have my secure charter against all that they hate. No one is to force them to travel or to oblige them to fight. The Muslims are to fight for them. If a female Christian it married to a Muslim, it is not to take place without her approval. She is not to be prevented from visiting her church to pray. Their churches are to be respected. They are neither to be prevented from repairing them nor the sacredness of their covenants. No one of the nation of Muslims is to disobey the covenant till the Last Day end of the world.
If you read it, you will see that it breathes not only goodwill, but also actual love. He gave to the Jews of Medina, so long as they were faithful to him, precisely the same treatment as to any Muslims. The place of Islam in Indonesian foreign policy after the Soeharto era is explored in the next chapter, where it is argued that foreign policy was more influenced by the rise of Islamic politics. Introduction After the fall of Soeharto in May , the role of Islam as a political force in Indonesian politics increased significantly.
Islam became an important factor in the dynamic of domestic politics. According to Sukma,, Islam was used by Habibie to legitimise his power, while, the election of Abdurrahman Wahid in October also demonstrated how Islam had shaped Indonesian politics. The coalition of Islamic political parties also contributed greatly to the rise of Megawati in July It analyses the problems which faced by Indonesia after the fall of Soeharto, including the mushrooming of Islamic parties and radical Islamic movements.
It highlights the political dynamics of this era especially place of Islam in Indonesian foreign policy. There was massive unemployment, demonstrations, ethnic and religious violence, and other problems which resulted in almost complete collapse of Indonesian state.
It should be noted that the fall of Soeharto gave many opportunities for Islamic groups and parties to participate in Indonesian political arena. After new electoral laws were passed, the number of registered political parties mushroomed. Nearly one-third 42 of new political parties were Islamic parties.
Some preferred to advocate Islamic values as a source of inspiration in democratic discourse. More radical Islamic radical groups in Indonesia also flourished after the fall of Soeharto using democratic processes for an undemocratic purposes. Some demanded that Habibie must be toppled because his Presidency was unlegitimate. See also Howard M. IX, Issue 1, Spring , pp. He often had no choice and was forced to compromise under international pressure such as the case of East Timor.
Islam in Indonesian Foreign Policy under Habibie The rise of Islamic forces in domestic politics led to the hope that the Habibie Presidency would accommodate Islamic interests in foreign policy. In this context, Habibie successfully formulated 2 Laws that related to the protection of human rights. By demonstrating its serious attempts to implement human rights in Indonesia, the Habibie government secured legitimacy and support from the international community.
Both international institutions agreed to give aid to Indonesia in order to overcome its economic crisis. For them, it was better if Habibie sought aid from the Middle East rather than the West.
In addition, a number of radical Islamic groups insisted the Indonesian government pay attention to and take more active role in Middle Eastern problems and oppose US aggression in Iraq in mid-December Even though the Habibie government paid little attention to these protests, the objections were an early indication that the dynamics of Indonesian foreign policy making in the post-Soeharto era were changing. Habibie preferred to work closely with the West and international institutions such as IMF rather with Islamic countries.
On many occasions, he expressed a desire to maintain partnerships and good relations with the West. Foreign policy was also in accordance with the domestic policy of emphasising economic development. Thus, domestic interests positioned Indonesia to become dependent on aid and partnerships Philip J Vermonte, pp. Sukma argues that Habibie continued explicitly to avoid any co-religious solidarity with Islamic world problems.
A similar situation occurred again when the US launched an air strike against Iraq in mid- December Although there was the rise in Islamic forces in domestic politics, this political dynamics was not reflected in the making of Indonesian foreign policy. This election was very important because it was only the second democratic general election after the first conducted in during the Parliamentary Democracy era.
Although during the New Order Era from to Indonesia held regular elections, there was much manipulation, intimidation and other negative regime practices to ensure that the ruling party, Golkar, would always win. The results showed that from the twenty Islamic political parties which took part, only ten gained one or Rizal Sukma, Islam in Indonesian Foreign Policy, pp. See also R. In this election, they only received As a result, the presidential election campaigns were dominated by the issue Islam versus non-Islam.
In response, they created and played a loose coalition under the name of Central Axis Poros Tengah. It nominated Abdurrahman Wahid as an alternative Presidential candidate in the election. See Kamaruddin, cited in Bahtiar Effendy, p. See also, Donald J. Porter, pp. It also indicates that Islam succeeded in playing an important role in the political system in post-Soeharto Indonesia. His decision to appointment Alwi Shihab as Foreign Minister, who was not a specialist in the portfolio and did not have a diplomatic career, brought a different nuance to foreign policy.
The rejection of his speech that mostly related to East Timor issues, has ended his political career. See R. Porter, p. Federspiel, p. Smith, p. For Wahid, although closer ties with the West was beneficial for Indonesia, it also invited wider intervention. By choosing this strategy, Indonesia hoped to have more bargaining power because of its close relations with many countries. Smith, pp. It also contradicted the principle of opposing colonialism and imperialism..
According to Sukma, the Israel controversy demonstrated the ability of Rizal Sukma, p. The lesson learnt by the government was that it was obliged to take great care not to offend Muslim society.
This case suggested that Indonesian foreign policy remained constrained by domestic political interests. This indicates that Islam influenced foreign policy but only as a secondary factor under president Wahid. Indonesia under Wahid conducted and maintained relations with any countries and organizations based on national rather than Islamic interests. Both the rise and downfall of Wahid were sponsored by Islamic parties and organizations.
As Azyumardi attests, mainstream Muslim organisations such as the Nahdhatul Ulama NU and Muhammadiyah did not have an objection on religious grounds to the election of Megawati as a woman as President. All the Islamic parties in Parliament also took similar position.
Thus, the election of the new national leadership in July represented a coalition between secular nationalist and Islamic nationalist groups. It is important to note that after the fall of Soeharto in , Indonesia was beset with many serious problems including poor security, legal uncertainty, and continuing political and social instability.
Besides, as Dewi Fortuna Anwar stated, there were regional rebellions, bloody ethnic and religious conflict, and the lack of rule of law. See also Rizal Sukma, p. Her government also committed to maintaining solid bilateral relations with the US, Japan, and Europe building on political and economic ties. This is because, as Rizal Sukma asserts, Megawati intended to conduct foreign policy in order to fulfill domestic political and economic interests. Megawati also wanted to use foreign policy as instrument to shape a peaceful international environment.
Besides, his appointment for Alwi Shihab who was a politician and not a diplomat career as the Foreign Minister disrupted the forming of cadres in foreign minister tradition. See Rizal Sukma, pp. See also Philip J Vermonte, p.
Consequently, her government did not pay attention to the importance of Islam in foreign policy nor have reference to the Arab-Islamic world. However, the 11 September attacks in the US forced Megawati to deal with global and domestic Islamic issues.
September 11 seemed to create a new world order in which Islam became the centre of greater negative attention and suspicion than before. Nonetheless, Megawati politically had to pay attention to Islamic voices in Indonesia which contributed significantly to her rise to Kai He, p. Although Megawati was the first President from a Muslim country to visit the US after September 11 and expressed her commitment to join on the war on terror, her decision caused criticism at home. He argued instead that the US should realize instead that the attacks were the result of a double standard toward Muslim states.
Their objections became more elevated when the US attacked Afghanistan and Iraq by utilising the war on terror for legitimacy. The government called on the US to consider UN Resolutions and think of victims of the war which were mostly civilians.
She preferred instead to use the domestic pressure at home as justification for her changing policy. Consequently, she rejected the demand of Islamic groups that Indonesia should be over its diplomatic relations with the US.
Conclusion This chapter discussed the place of Islam in Indonesian foreign policy during the post-Soeharto era. It argued that the rise of Islamic forces in domestic politics resulted in the involvement of Islamic groups in the emerging democratic system. The rise of political Islam influenced the dynamics of Indonesian politics during the transition era. The three Indonesian Presidents in this era utilised Islamic forces for legitimacy and to garner political support to maintain power.
It is not surprising that during a short 6 years transition period, Indonesia had three different Presidents. However, the rise of Islamic forces in domestic politics did not correlate with influence in Indonesian foreign policy. Although Habibie mobilised Islamic forces to gain political legitimacy, he continued to prioritise the US and the West in his foreign policy decisions. In contrast, he proposed a plan to establish relations with Israel, the enemy of Islam for many Indonesians.
The September 11 attacks caused the government to recognise the Islamic factor in Indonesian foreign policy on responding the attacks, even though it remained a secondary consideration after the political and economic considerations of the government. Thus, it can be said that the influence of Islam in Indonesian foreign policy during transition era was limited and more in form rather than substance.
In this context, the new era in Indonesia that influences foreign policy making is discussed in the following chapter, examining how Islam and democracy try to go hand in hand. After Indonesia consolidated its domestic politics and reasserted its role in international affairs. Indonesia successfully conducted direct presidential elections and general elections in , created a new Constitutional Court, and conducted elections for local parliaments and leaders.
Consequently, after , democracy and Islamic influences emerged together as important factors in Indonesian foreign policy to redefine its international role. Ricklefs, A History of Modern Indonesia since c. The second part discusses the new Indonesian foreign policy in the SBY era.
The third part evaluates the emergence of global aspirations in Indonesian foreign policy, centred on playing an active role in the Islamic world. Habibie started the process by regulating the liberalisation of Indonesian politics.
Abdurrahman Wahid continued the transition by reducing the involvement of the military in politics and starting the process of amending the Constitution. Megawati realised and finalised the necessary amendments to consolidate reforms of the national political system.
The first direct presidential election was held in Decentralisation through regional autonomy was aimed at encouraging more effective, efficient and democratic governance.
In this regard, democratisation went hand in hand with decentralization to improve the political system. Local governments were no longer accountable to the central government, but to local parliaments.
Indonesia had begun a process of transition from authoritarian and centralised government to become more democratic and decentralised. He points out that during the transition era from to , there was much social conflict, communal violence and political rivalry between the civil sector and the military. It gave the president a strong popular mandate, helping Hall Hill and Takashi Shiraisi, p. Because the president and members of the parliaments were elected directly by people, their position was equal.
The president and the parliament were demarked clearly and protected by several regulations. The parliament can not impeach the president, and the president can not intervene in the parliament.
II, no. See also Saldi Isra, pp. Freedom House also positioned Indonesia as the most consolidated democracy in Southeast Asia compared with developments in Thailand, the Philippines and Cambodia. Hadiwinata and Ivana Agustin, pp. Hadiwinata and Ivana Agustin, p. Paul J. Then Allah sent down the following verse of Quran,.
And those who associate others with Allah say, "If Allah had willed, we would not have worshipped anything other than Him, neither we nor our fathers, nor would we have forbidden anything through other than Him. So is there upon the messengers except [the duty of] clear notification?
Surah An-Nahl From the above verse we can clearly understand that tolerance or patience is also the nature of God then who are we to forcefully impose our decisions on others. We can also understand the tolerance of Allah by the deeds we are doing in this world, we all are committing mistakes almost daily in our lives and doing sins but He is continuously giving us chances to realize our wrong deeds and to not repeat them again.
People should not think that why Allah has chosen them to test their patience rather they must think that pain is a blessing and Allah tests those who are closed to Him. If pain is not the biggest blessing then why would Allah give it to His most beloved subjects the prophets?
The Islamic attitude towards the followers of other religions is not only to show tolerance towards their beliefs, but also to affirm a non-negotiable Islamic principle of tolerance and religious responsibility.
The right course has become clear from error. In fact, Islam through the course of its history has granted the people of other faiths the highest degree of tolerance by allowing them to follow their way, although some of their practices might have been in conflict with the religion of the majority.
It was this degree of tolerance that the Muslims adopted towards their non-Muslim citizens. There is another aspect of this matter which cannot be found in the written laws, nor can it be enforced by courts or governments: it is the spirit of tolerance which underlies upright attitudes, benevolent dealings, respect for one's neighbors, and all the sincere sentiments of piety, compassion, and courtesy.
Execution and report of such attitudes are required of every Muslim and cannot be obtained through constitutional legislation or court jurisdiction. Many Qur'anic teachings have emphasized dealings with non-Muslims with justice and respect, especially those who live in peace with the Muslims and do not raise enmity against them.
Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly. We wish neither from you reward nor gratitude. Although Muslims might disagree with other ideological systems and religious dogmas, it should not prevent them from demonstrating the correct manner of discussion and interaction with non-Muslims:. And our God and your God is one; and we are Muslims [in submission] to Him. In this context, it seems appropriate to raise the question: Is tolerance of other religions as preached by Islam a matter left to the Muslims to decide about?
As a matter of fact, tolerance in Islam has ideological basis in the Qur'an and the teachings of Prophet Muhammad, and it is not subject to any human interference.
Therefore, it is a constant Islamic principle that does not change over time or place. Islam is the final revelation of Allah the Almighty and it is the religion of universal truth for all mankind.
All of its doctrines can withstand any challenge. Therefore, the existence of various religions--man-made or supposedly revealed religions--is only to allow the human intellect to choose.
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