Indonesia Reports
 | Factsheet – Situation Analysis Study on Religious Freedom and Tolerance in Indonesia – January 2022The documents present summary of findings of situation analysis study on religious freedom and tolerance in Indonesia, under the PROTECT Program (Promoting Collective Efforts Towards Resilience and Tolerance in Indonesia), supported by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. Despite its reputation as a diverse country, in recent years Indonesia has experienced a depressing increase in instances of intolerance towards minority groups, which especially exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic that ensued a digital surge due to the physical distancing norms and lockdowns. The flooding online misinformation has also sparked a rise in intolerant discourse targeting minority groups, as much the pandemic has been limiting room for dialogues and positive interactions between people. The objective of this situation analysis study is to support the baseline of the project by studying the existing situation of freedom of religion and belief (FORB) and civil society organizations’ participation in advocating FORB and protection of minorities, and promoting tolerance. Overall, the study highlighted that the situation of freedom of religions, belief, and tolerance in general can be regarded as ‘remaining fragile’, putting an emphasis that as though the intensity is increasing, the tension is not extremely violent. Albeit multiple efforts to support the social cohesion have been convened by the government and the civil society organizations (CSOs), there still has been very little examples where the minority and hard-to-reach communities meet with the divisive promoting groups to mutually share their views and concerns. In the end, diversities were not represented in the forums, or only engaged in an exclusive room for dialogue – still trapped, in the segregation of the majority and minority. In most cases, there may be harmony, but diversity remains neglected. |
| Social Media Use Needs Assessment for At-Risk Groups & In-Depth Analysis of Use of Social Media in IndonesiaIndonesia has undergone dramatic changes since its economic crisis in 1998, including a transition from authoritarianism to democracy and subsequent successful democratic elections. In more recent years, extremist groups in Indonesia have been gaining more support within national, regional and local elections. Cities such as Surabaya have suffered an upsurge in violent terrorist attacks. Online platforms have become a significant arena for hate speech, attacks on minority groups and for galvanizing support for extreme ideas by both violent extremist and politically-motivated groups. In this context, government agencies and non-government organizations are seeking to design interventions that counter the impact of extreme narratives online as well as build resilience to such damaging messaging. This report summarizes the findings from a research to inform Search for Common Ground (Search) and other stakeholders in developing an implementation strategy to reduce the influence of violent extremist narratives online, particularly targeted at youth and ex-juvenile offenders in Indonesia via social media. |
| Public Perception Report – Solidifying Religious Freedom in Indonesia – May 2019This report is from the Solidifying Religious Freedom in Indonesia project, funded by the US Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and is implemented from September 2017 – June 2019. Although Indonesia is a diverse nation based on ideals of the Pancasila, recent years […] |
 | On Freedom of Religion and Interfaith Tolerance in IndonesiaOur media analysis shed light on freedom of religion and interfaith tolerance in Indonesia. |
 | Gender Sensitive Citizen Budget Planning in Village – Baseline Study ReportVillage often becomes a contested arena in Indonesia’s development. Prior to enactment of the Village Law No 6/2014, village was put at the very bottom of Indonesia’s government hierarchy and treated as a silent object of Central and Regional Governments’ development programs and projects. – due to regional […] |
| Empowering Interfaith Collaboration to Respect and Protect Holy Sites in IndonesiaAs part of its protection of Holy Sites program in Indonesia, Search for Common Ground conducted a baseline study to understand the level of knowledge, attitude, and practice on the protection and respect for holy sites in several areas in Indonesia. In the past three years, a number of serious incidents of disrespect against holy sites in Indonesia occurred. The incidents include destruction of holy sites, forced eviction of some religious communities from their holy sites, and closure of holy sites of some religions by community groups who did not agree with establishment of the sites. Unfortunately, the State, especially local governments did not take necessary actions to prevent and/or manage these incidents well. The State did not protect holy sites sufficiently nor take legal actions against the perpetrators. Higher prevalence of religious violence and inadequate handling of the violence might intensify similar violence in the future and more people will be deprived of their holy sites. This baseline study provides data that helps adapt the programmatic strategy and also pleads a case for better religious tolerance in Indonesia. |
| Protecting the Sacred: an Analysis of Local Perspectives on Holy Site Protection in Four Areas in IndonesiaThe document presents the findings of a research on Holy Site Protection in Indonesia under the program of “Empowering Inter-Faith Collaboration to Respect and Protect Holy Sites in Indonesia”. Holy sites, particularly houses of worship and other sacred places, often become the target of destruction during religious conflicts in Indonesia. Frequently these holy sites become the center of controversy and eventually they are targets of violence. There is an urgent need to promote the significance of strengthening public understanding of houses of worship and holy sites. This research report is the first step in this program. The research had three key questions to investigate: (a) To what extent can the Universal Code of Conduct on Holy Sites be used for a campaign to respect and protect houses of worship and holy sites in Indonesia? (b) What are the perceptions and public knowledge about houses of worship and holy sites as well as their attitude towards the recognition and respect for them?; and (C) How does social change affect the relationship between religion and the protection of houses of worship and holy sites in certain areas of Indonesia? The investigation took place in four areas of Indonesia: Manado, Pontianak, Bali, and Bekasi. The research method used was a combination of quantitative research methods such as surveys and qualitative interviews, observations, and document analysis. There were 669 survey respondents and 60 interviewees in this research. |