Society

West Papua leaders press for Christian rights, threaten election boycott

By: Nathanael Ng, Christian Post
Posted:
Thursday, 13 November 2008, 17:03 (MYT)
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Religious authorities in the Indonesian Province of West Papua have taken up the fight for Christian rights in the world's most populous Muslim country by urging a boycott of next year's elections.

West Papua Religious Community Forum chairman, Bram Maudoma, said he will urge voters in his region not to vote in the 2009 Elections, in the group's protest against the passing of the anti-pornography law and joint ministerial decree that made Sunday a working day, according to Tempo Interactive.

“We are doing this because the country is not respecting us,” he added.

According to Bram, the ratification of the controversial anti-pornography law “violates Papuans’ human rights and will destroy the Papuan culture” and warned that if the law is maintained it will create conflict among people. He was speaking after a meeting with the Regional Council vice chairman La Ode Ida at the House of Representatives on last Tuesday.

Christians and Hindus, a minority in the country, have charged that the law is too vague and poses a threat to artistic, religious, and cultural freedom.

About a thousand Christians in the Indonesian province have arisen in protest against the law, which they say would threaten traditional values, according to Radio Australia.

The Papuan religious leaders added that people in the region also rejected the implementation of the five-minister’s joint decree that determined Sunday to be a working day in an effort to save energy in Java and Bali.

“Sunday is the time for Christians to go to church,” said Andrikus Mofu, the leader of the delegation. “We want the law annulled.”

A member of the Regional Council Ishak Madacan said their demands need to be taken seriously.

“This is a matter of existence,” he said. “There must be a political decision from the DPD (the Regional Council) to deal with this issue.”

La Ode Ida said he will immediately respond to the input from the West Papuans, and discuss it internally with the DPD chairman. According to him, the response will take the form of a political decision.

“This is a matter of degraded pluralism,” he said. “This is a serious issue, the nation’s unity could be at risk.”

Two weeks ago, West Papuan Legislative Council chairman Jimmy Demianus Ijie urged the government to annul the anti-pornography law, which was ratified at the end of October at a House of Representatives democratic meeting, threatening that West Papua will separate from Indonesia if their demand is ignored, reported Tempo.

The anti-pornography law was pushed by a small group of Islamist parties who say it is needed to protect the young and raise society’s moral standards, according to Voice of America.

However, detractors say the new regulation will not only fail to achieve its intended purpose, but will in fact give the small but very vocal Islamic fundamentalist groups license to infringe on cultural and religious freedom.

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