4 Comments on “Separation of State & Religion”

1. O. Bule Says:
   July 27th, 2006 at 11:46 pm

   Good for the Jakarta Post. If it is true that it is the ony newspaper in Indonesia that is speaking up against the stupidity of Sharia law, then the shame is on the rest of the newspapers in Indonesia for not doing so. Sharia law is the way that Taliban-like extremist, murderers gain power. I pray to God that Indonesians do not allow this stupidity to overtake them.

   O. Bule

2. badai ismatu Says:
   August 8th, 2006 at 12:00 pm

   The only thing that Indonesian could do in regard to the need of separation between religion and the state is to amend its own Constitution mentioning the phrase on religious matters like in Article 29 of UUD 1945 (such as that the state guarantees religious life in many respect) as well as to omit the First Principle in Pancasila (Ketuhanan Yang Maha Esa) that from the first time erupted controversial debate and uneasy feeling among religious groups. Without this effort, separation of both seems to be a waiting for godot.

   Taking account religious matters into state political affairs means that the society themselves has given ‘unpaid bill’ to the ruler to get involve, penetrate and to regulate and in some sense can infringe the freedom of religion itself. I am now doing my research on this kind of issue comparing many countries and I found that those regulations on religious affairs in Indonesia indeed serve for the interest of majority group rather that for the betterment of all citizens. Here, I feel ashame to my collegues and friends who belong to minorities.

3. Andrew Says:
   August 17th, 2006 at 1:57 am

   Separation of State & Religion = the way to go.

4. Ismayanto Prihandariyanto Says:
   August 21st, 2007 at 9:38 am

   Thanks Dawam !!! I have collected your books for perhaps 10 years ! You have great ideas. Actually the problems don’t happen to Muslims only. The Christians like Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell and even Bush are among the bigotries. The Jews have Meir Kahane and the terrorists like Eden Natan Zada, and Baruch Goldstein, The Buddhists also in Thailand want to promote a Buddhist state !!! But again the problem happens deeply in some Muslim brothers!.
   The problem in the teaching of Islam is that the hardliners or Islamists is that they believe the idea that the past is everything good. They believe in pseudo idea that under Islam everything was good ( it is same with the idea of the Zionists and Christian zionism!!!),
   So, I think that is an obligation to all believers ( whatever his faith ) that we should unite to enlighten to our own community, that secularization is the will of God ,Himself!!!

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