SBY told to be more decisive in resolving intolerance cases

Bagus BT Saragih, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | National | Mon, May 27 2013, 10:45 PM

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Presidential advisor on human rights, Albert Hasibuan, has asked President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to be more decisive with his subordinates, including regional leaders, in resolving prolonged discrimination and persecution cases against minority groups.
Albert, who recently submitted a report to the President on the management of the rising number of cases of intolerance, said that he had found that police officers, as well as regional leaders, did not intend to resolve the cases even though the President had ordered them to address the incidents.
“I’ve made a field observation and I found that the President’s orders were simply ignored. I think the President should now act more decisively otherwise such cases will continue and this is dangerous for the nation,” Albert said at his office on Monday.
Among the cases included in Albert’s observation were the hundreds of displaced Shiites in Sampang, East Java, who have been sheltering in a sports building for months following violent attacks on their village; the forced church closure and intimidation of the HKBP Filadelfia congregation in Bekasi regency despite a court ruling in favor of the congregation; the forced closure of the GKI Yasmin church by the Bogor city administration despite a Supreme Court ruling in favor of its congregation; and the recent attack at an Ahmadiyah village in Tasikmalaya, also in West Java.
“In Sampang, for example, the regent bluntly said that he did not want any Shia followers there and asked the displaced community members to leave,” said Albert, adding that the regent’s act was just like an open rejection of the President’s calls for resolution. (ebf)