Soft Islamization

The experts say soft Islam is sweeping the country, not hard Islam.

In a similar vein to Time's " Vespa Girls " story of 2007 the Economist says Indonesia is a place where "Where 'soft Islam' is on the march" economist The story begins:

Is Indonesia, the most populous Muslim-majority country, undergoing creeping Islamisation?

Some examples of Islamic extremism, such as …

Malaysia Islamization

… endowment or national legislation.

Although Muslims are only barely a majority in Malaysia Islamization goes on with the government apparently seeing Malaysia as some kind of Islamic state. He says Islamization's main effect is to highlight differences, rather than unite the country. Asia Times

Fitna by Geert Wilders

… seems simple yet appealing and his voice is loud. Deport criminal and illegal foreigners, stop the Islamization of Dutch society (prohibit construction of new mosques, refusing all Muslims from moving to and living in Holland), sell the Dutch Antilles to the highest offer on a Dutch auction website and much of the problems are solved.

So far his party PVV (Freedom Party) managed to win 9 seats in the last elections but opinion polls show they can count on 15 seats at least or even more if …

US Military Intelligence

… oficial papers
nahdlatul ulema
muslim garis keras indonesia
meaning of mukmin
islamization soft in indonesia
pesantren al zaytun

These kinds of visits to IM are not uncommon, from American and also Australian government agencies, particularly from

pacom.mil (U.S. Pacific Command)
pacfa.fleet.navy.mil (U.S Navy Pacific Fleet)
dss.mil (U.S Defense Security Service (DSS))

It may only be some people who work at the agencies, or maybe their …

Islam Lunak

… Economist.

Artikel ini diterjemahkan oleh Hannah Mulders dari versi bahasa Inggris - Soft Islamization.

Modern Islamic Art

… Indonesian culture is currently being torn in two directions, with two competing influences, Islamization or Islamification, and westernisation or occidentalization.

Out of this competition three strains of culture have emerged, one based on Islam, one based on western culture, and one a hybrid or mixture of the two. He does not mention "indigenous", or non Islam-based Indonesian culture/s.

The hybrid form comes about because there are aspects of Islam and western culture which are …

Sharia Application

Sharia can be applied without making Indonesia an Islamic state.

Fuad Amsyari of the Crescent Star Party, Partai Bulan Bintang (PBB), said in Jakarta on 21st August that the basic form of the state, Pancasila, did not need to be changed in order that sharia be applied. Instead, every law that was made could incorporate Islamic law.

It was a mistake to think that sharia application …

Comment by Augusto: … still recall) that islamization can also be imposed by …

Islam & Pork

Pig and pork eating issues in the news in Sumatra.

In early June 2007 a housekeeper in Medan, called Risma, who comes from Palembang, reported her boss Andi (50) to the police for forcing her to eat some pork meat.

The case excited some passions in Medan, easily understandable for those who have noticed the visceral disgust and loathing that many Muslims have whenever pork appears in …

Comment by Cukurungan: … vanished due to Islamization. It is a fact that …

Transnational Islam

Nahdlatul Ulama continues to feel under threat, from politicians, other Muslim groups, and transnational Islamic movements.

Nahdlatul Ulama leader Hasyim Muzadi said on 22nd July that all sections of his organisation, the largest Muslim body in the country, must be on alert against the continual attacks upon it. Speaking to a gathering of 1400 people in Madiun, East Java, he said:

…

Comment by Djoko: … of Indonesian Islamization which has been going on …

National Insults

Indonesia has suffered a great number of insults to its pride and integrity recently.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) leader Hasyim Muzadi said on June 30th that Indonesia had recently suffered two terrible and embarrassing blows, the dancing resurgence of the South Moluccas Republic movement (Republik Maluku Selatan, (RMS)) in Ambon, and the banning of Indonesian Airlines from European airspace, …

Comment by Cukurungan: … strict to protest islamization of their country. That …

Javanese Terrorists

The Javanese are more likely to become terrorists than other ethnic groups.

Professor Azyumardi Azra, a liberal Muslim intellectual and former rector of Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN; State Islamic University) in Jakarta, said on June 23rd how surprised he was that most terrorists in Indonesia were of Javanese origin, given the fact that the Javanese are often not known for their …

Comment by Shiva: … to accept Islamization. They fled to Bali and the …

Kissing Women

Kissing women tourists in Bali is not allowed for Islamist politicians.

A PPP politician from Banjarnegara, Central Java, Yulianto, is threatened with being expelled from the United Development Party because he was seen to kiss a foreign tourist at Bali, while on a working visit on the island. It is not clear what sort of a kiss it was, whether on the lips, or elsewhere, passionate or …

Comment by El Gran Combo Puertorico: … I reject so much islamization — wahabbisation to …

Christianisation

Christianisation through sodomy, hypnosis, and kidnapping is rampant in Indonesia.

It is often heard that Indonesia is subject to a process of Christianisation, one example being an old article by one Herry Nurdi in Sabili magazine - "Alert! Christianization is Attacking Campuses" (ALERT! KRISTENISASI MENYERBU KAMPUS), the word "attack" having the sense of "in great numbers" or "stampede", …

Comment by Yunir: … concerning Islamization of the Europeans.

Islam is for Arabs

Two Javanese men fall foul of the law for saying Islam is an unwanted Arab import.

In the town of Pasuruan, East Java two men, Rohim or Rochamim and Toyib were taken to the police station by angry local residents on 10th April because of Rochamim's dangerous ideas about religion, to which Toyib had become a follower.

Rochamim says that Islam is an Arab religion and has nothing to do …

Comment by Aluang anak Bayang: … sunni vs shia, islamization of Europe, etc, etc, and …

Jimly Asshiddiqie

Constitutional court head Jimly Asshiddiqie on harmonising Islamic law and Indonesian law.

The head of the constitutional court, Mahkamah Konstitusi (MK), Jimly Asshiddiqie, says Islamic law and Indonesian law have to be brought into harmony.

Islamicness and Indonesianness have to go together harmoniously.

Speaking to a gathering of the Muslimat Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) in Jakarta last …

Comment by El Gran Combo Puertorico: … term for “islamization +(Arabization)”?, …

Indonesian Islamic State (NII)

Action is urged against the Indonesian Islamic State (NII, Negara Islam Indonesia) movement.

The Jakarta Post says former members of a religious group affiliated with the Indonesian Islamic State (NII, Negara Islam Indonesia) movement urged the Bandung chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) to issue a warning about the congregation.

The former members recently went to the MUI …

Comment by Rockstar: … will happen next. Islamization? Please don’t tell …

Hidayat Nur Wahid

Hidayat Nurwahid on the beauty and ugliness of sharia.

Hidayat Nur Wahid, one of the leaders of the parliament from the Islamist Justice Party, PKS, spoke recently on the topic of the "Beauty of Sharia" at the Islamic Book Fair (IBF) in Jakarta.

He said people had to understand that there were many different kinds of Muslim and that they had different understandings of sharia. Some …

Comment by ahmad: … site. Regarding islamization Indonesia is still …

Poligami Award

An Islamic court in West Sumatra puts on trial Aa Gym and Yahya Zaini .

The Majelis Tinggi Kerapatan Adat Alam Minangkabau , or the Minangkabau Traditional Culture High Council, in cooperation with the Komite Penegak Syariat Islam Sumatra Barat , the West Sumatra Committee for the Application of Islamic Sharia Law, held a mock trial of polygamist Abdullah Gymnastiar and adulterer …

Comment by Hassan: … you so worried if Islamization is coming to Indonesia, …

Papuan Mission

The men of the 521 battalion from Kediri are marching off to Papua bringing guns, condoms, seeds, and religious tracts.

The 650 members of the 521/Dadaha Yodha infantry battalion based in Kediri, East Java, are shortly to begin a tour of duty of Papua, to patrol the border with Papua New Guinea. Major General Bambang Darmono, while carrying out an inspection of the men on the 14th, asked …

Comment by Rococo: … the beginning of Islamization of Papua!

Asian Islam

… there has grown a tendency for Muslims to become legalistic, leads to what some may see as Islamization.

South and Southeast Asian Islam are unique for the importance of mysticism, or Sufism. Some schools of Sufism are heavily syncretic/influenced by Hinduism.

In India Hindus fiercely resisted Islam, but in south-east Asia the Hindu-Buddhist tradition collapsed almost completely, except in Bali, for Indonesia. Hinduism survived in some form in the syncretic forms of Sufi Islam …

Minahasa Nationalism

The Gerakan Kemerdekaan Minahasa in North Sulawesi have hopes of independence from Indonesia.

The region of Minahasa occupies the northern part of North Sulawesi province and contains the regencies of Minahasa, North Minahasa, South Minahasa, Bitung, Manado, Tomohon, and Bolaang Mongondow, see map . The people speak their own language, Manado Malay, and were generally pro-Dutch during …

Comment by Quazi: … hand, attempts at Islamization will lead to its eventual …

RUU AP or RUU PP

The RUU APP is again being debated in the parliament, but may have now been reduced to just the RUU Pornography.

The RUU APP is the controversial anti -pornography and pornaksi bill. As mentioned in " RUU APP Stalled " it was believed that there were two competing bills in circulation, one with the original strict provisions against public indecency (pornoaksi) and one without. It …

Comment by Karlira Kanakhuko: … condemning against Islamization of Indonesia. Try to …

MP’s Denounce Sharia Laws

… (PDI-P) said the petition was aimed at creating a powerful legislative movement to reverse the Islamization of the country.

We want to create a snowball effect, something that we hope will end up with the establishment of a House working committee to investigate the matter.

Other notable signatories included Trimedya Panjaitan, Permadi and Wayan Koster of the PDI-P, Carol D. Kadang and Jeffrey Massie of the PDS, Joko Purwongemboro of the Golkar Party, and Muhammad A.S. Hikam of the …

Sundanese Nationalism

From the depths of time grave threats to the nation have re-arisen, Sundanese nationalism and international communism.

Police have recently arrested a number of members of a Sundanese nationalist group, in Tangerang, Banten, and Bogor, West Java, both near Jakarta. Some reports have the group being called the "Negara Sunda Nusantara" (NSN), others as the "Kerajaan Sunda Nusantara", while …

Comment by Paul Dale: … due to increasing Islamization/Arabization, continued …

Critiques of Moderate Indonesia

… has been importing those of Middle Eastern Muslim extremists.

The result is creeping Islamization of the country.

Read the full article.

The Washington Post also has a piece on the enthusiastic welcome given to the Iranian leader by some Muslims. It concludes:

Although Indonesia is relatively moderate and maintains generally cordial relations with the West, the Iranian leader's message resonates with many of its young people.

Finally, as some sort of response …

Comment by Treespotter: … no creeping Islamization in the country, Indonesia …

Nahdlatul Ulama Moving Rightwards

… itself into a communal and sectarian organization which has a hidden agenda to advance the "Islamization" of Indonesia in more expressly political terms.

Zuhairi said that NU's support for the implementation of sharia in some regions and the pornography bill marked a setback and even violation of the organization's 1926 khittah (founding principles), which view pluralism and multiculturalism as rahmatan lil alamin (a blessing for all humankind and the universe).

NU's khittah is …

Comment by Rockstar: … the advantage of Islamization? will it be the solution …

The Trouble With Syariah

… those actions by the WH were not necessary at all since what happened in Aceh is Arabization, not Islamization.

Her conclusion is not especially helpful however. She simply hopes that Islamic law can be applied with "tenderness and compassion" rather than brute force. She avoids questioning things too deeply. She lists some examples of how women object to being forced to cover their hair in the Arab fashion, like

[My daughter] is only 10, she hasn't even got her first period yet. Let …

Comment by Karlira Kanakahuko: … criticize against Islamization of Indonesia. We hope that …

Muslim Groups Rally for Anti-Porn Bill

Muslim groups staged rallies yesterday at the Tangerang local council and the administration office in support of the pornography bill , which is being deliberated by the House of Representatives.

The Indonesian Hisbullah Front, Lembaga Dakwah Islamiyah Indonesia and Majelis Taklim Larangan, said the bill could save the younger generation from moral degeneration.

Our intentions are …

Comment by emuh: … to implement the Islamization of Indonesian …

Aceh Sharia Laws on Female Dress

… What can be seen to be happening in Aceh, as well as other places in Indonesia, is not actually "Islamization" as it is often called, but actually "Arabization". If we give them the space, Aceh's unique experience of Islam is being subsumed by conservative elements of the Arab world. This conservative view is now even being challenged by moderate Muslims in the Middle East.

The dominance of this approach has, in the large part, been driven by the influx of outsiders entering Aceh with …

About

… theme is cultural change. Most often this means we look at issues of what might be called Islamization, but sometimes stories fall into the category of globalization, westernization, or other.

What are some articles that tell me about the view of Indonesia Matters?

These are some of the better posts from the archives :

Pogroms in East Java 1965-66

Youth Political & Religious Affiliation

On the Scrapheap of History

Porn & Pornoaksi …