Persecuting, prosecuting minorities
This was an article contribution by Dr Al Makin, Visiting Research Fellow at the Asia Research Institute at NUS. Dr Makin reflected that the assault on the Shiite group in Sampang on the East Java island of Madura is a display of sectarian violence motivated mainly by religious sentiments that have been occurring across Indonesia lately, and highlighted that the Indonesian government is either avoiding honesty or simplifying the problem. He pointed out that the persecution of minorities in the Indonesian society, as well as their prosecution for their beliefs and faiths amount to a systematic abuse of human rights with religious legitimacy. He opined that the minorities’ demand for justice is wishful thinking, and they are apparently destined to live in constant danger...