1 USCIRF Country Update: Indonesia | January 2024

COUNTRY UPDATE:

INDONESIA

UNITED STATES COMMISSION on

INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

732 N. Capitol Street, NW, Suite #A714

Washington, DC 20401

202-523-3240

January 2024

By Patrick Greenwalt, Policy Analyst 

Legal Impediments to Religious Freedom 

in Indonesia

Introduction

Freedom of religion or belief continues to suffer throughout Indonesia, and blasphemy 

allegations and convictions remain persistent religious freedom violations. The new 

criminal code, passed at the end of 2022 and signed by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) 

in January 2023, will further criminalize blasphemy and expand on other religious 

freedom violations when implemented in 2026. Additionally, local government 

initiatives to codify discrimination against minority communities, including religious 

minorities, continue to gain traction throughout the country. Finally, Indonesia’s 

education system in some locales continues to mandate the wearing of religious 

clothing such as the hijab, even for non-Muslim girls.

Background

Indonesia has a long tradition of religious pluralism and promotes it through its 

official ideology known as Pancasila, which comprises five principles: monotheism, 

civilized humanity, national unity, deliberative democracy, and social justice. Despite 

its commitments to international human rights as outlined in international treaties 

such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), its promotion of 

Pancasila extends only to those religious groups the government recognizes and has 

historically excluded indigenous religions and beliefs and non-theists. The government 

promotes Pancasila internally and, under President Jokowi, has sought to export its 

self-described moderate interpretation of Islam abroad. This report highlights religious 

freedom violations perpetrated by the Indonesian government that stand in contrast to 

this official narrative of moderation and pluralism. This report also provides analysis 

on violations that could ensue when the new criminal code is implemented in 2026.

Blasphemy 

Blasphemy remains an ongoing and systematic religious freedom violation in 

Indonesia. Blasphemy allegations at present cite three laws: Law No. 11/2008 on 

Electronic Information and Transaction (known as the ITE Law) Article 28(2), 

Criminal Code Article 156(a), and Presidential Decree No. 1/PNPS/1965. The new 

criminal code will further codify blasphemy and other religious freedom violations 

when implemented in 2026. 

www.USCIRF.gov

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Abraham Cooper

Chair

Frederick A. Davie

Vice Chair

Commissioners

David Curry

Susie Gelman 

Mohamed Magid 

Stephen Schneck

Nury Turkel 

Eric Ueland

Frank Wolf

Erin D. Singshinsuk

Executive Director

USCIRF’s Mission

To advance international 

freedom of religion or 

belief, by independently 

assessing and unflinchingly 

confronting threats to this 

fundamental right.
2 USCIRF Country Update: Indonesia | January 2024

Most blasphemy allegations aim to protect the prevalent 

interpretation of Islam and its social orientation, but 

anyone from any recognized religious community can 

make accusations, and accusations can be politically 

motivated. In February 2022, former government minister 

Roy Suryo filed a police report against current Religious 

Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Quomas for blasphemy, 

allegations that were ultimately dismissed. However, in 

June 2022 Suryo was charged with blasphemy against 

Buddhism for an image he posted online of a Borobudur 

stupa photoshopped to resemble President Jokowi. On 

December 28, 2022, the West Jakarta District Court 

sentenced Suryo to 18 months in prison and a fine of 

approximately $19,000, a sentence the Jakarta High 

Court upheld on February 10, 2023, while imposing an 

additional fine of approximately $9,500 or two additional 

months in jail. However, in May, Suryo was released.

In March 2023, social media influencer Lina Lutfiawati 

made a video in which she uttered an Islamic prayer 

before eating food that included pork. The Indonesia 

Ulema Council (MUI) lodged blasphemy charges against 

Lutfiawati. In September, Lutfiawati was sentenced to 

two years in prison and fined approximately $16,000. 

In August in West Java, authorities charged the head 

of an Islamic school, Panji Gumilang, with blasphemy 

for his religious teachings. The charges were brought

after it became known he taught students that men and 

women should be allowed to pray alongside each other 

and that women should be allowed to become preachers. 

On November 6, the Indramayu District Court held its 

first trial session to determine whether Gumilang has 

committed blasphemy.

New Criminal Code – RUU KUHP

Background

In December 2022, the Indonesian Parliament passed 

a new criminal code (known as the RUU KUHP) that 

will be implemented in 2026. This code was initially 

proposed in 2019 but received widespread protest from 

civil society for its numerous violations of international 

human rights standards, including freedom of religion 

or belief. During the intervening years, civil society 

and human rights activists consistently reported that 

the official consultation for reviewing this criminal 

code primarily included members of quasi-government 

religious organizations such as the Nahdlatul Ulama and 

Muhammadiyah and was largely led by the MUI. 

Religious affairs in Indonesia are managed by quasigovernment religious organizations such as the MUI. 

During 2023, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights led 

several initiatives at universities across Indonesia aimed 

at what it termed “socializing” the criminal code. These 

initiatives were to inform community members of the 

aspects of the law that will change when the RUU KUHP 

is implemented in 2026. 

The RUU KUHP, as passed, is amended from the 

2019 draft, yet it codifies several human rights violations 

and enforces specific religious interpretations on the 

population as a whole regardless of their religion or 

belief. Key aspects of the criminal code with implications 

for religious freedom are discussed below.

Jakarta

 Indonesia
USCIRF Country Update: Indonesia | January 2024 3

Chapter VII

Chapter VII of the RUU KUHP, titled Criminal Actions 

against Religion, Beliefs, and Religious Life or Beliefs, 

contains Articles 300–305, which expand the legal 

framework for religious freedom violations. The threeyear period until implementation provides space for 

analysis on what the new criminal code entails as well as 

an opportunity for the government to clarify how it will 

enforce the code. 

Articles 300 and 301

Article 300 could further criminalize blasphemy and 

hate speech. The previous version included terms such as 

“insulting” or “defaming” religion, which have been used 

by existing laws to prosecute blasphemy. The version that 

passed includes language on “hostility” and “hate.” 

Article 300

“Any person who publicly:

a) commits an act of hostility

b) makes a statement of hate or hostility; or

c) incites hostility, violence, or discrimination

against a religion, belief, classes of people, 

or groups on the basis of religion or belief in 

Indonesia, faces a maximum three-year prison term 

or Category IV fine.”

Article 301 strengthens and further codifies the 

government’s ability to police social media and 

technology for religious content. Current policy is based 

on the ITE Law 28(2). Blasphemy allegations in Indonesia 

often do not originate from digital surveillance or policing 

by the government. Instead, allegations largely arise from 

individuals and organizations. The government then 

processes these allegations through the legal system. 

Human rights activists often note that this legal process 

has evolved, in part, to minimize incidences of violence by 

providing a legal channel for individuals and communities 

to respond to perceived attacks on their religious group. 

Article 301 maintains the potential to expand the 

capability of individuals making allegations. The ITE Law 

28(2) has been used as the basis to prosecute blasphemylike allegations for actions committed on social media 

and through the use of technology. It expands on the ITE 

Law 28(2) by further defining what posts on social media 

could be used to hold an individual liable for blasphemy 

or hate speech. 

ITE Law Article 28(2) RUU KHUP Article 301(1)

Any person who knowingly and without authority 

disseminates information aimed at inflicting hatred 

or dissension on individuals and/or certain groups of 

community based on ethnic groups, religions, races, 

and intergroups (SARA).

Any person who broadcasts, displays, attaches 

writings or images, or presents a recording, 

including disseminating it via information technology 

containing a criminal act as intended in Article 300, 

with the intention that the contents of the writing, 

image, or recording become known or better known 

in general, shall be punished with a maximum 

imprisonment of five years or a maximum fine of 

Category V.
4 USCIRF Country Update: Indonesia | January 2024

Article 302

Article 302 criminalizes incitement toward apostasy 

without directly criminalizing apostasy. While the 

initial draft contained language that would have focused 

on preventing coercion, the language included is 

intentionally vague, allowing for broad interpretation and 

application. Actions or expression that could be perceived 

as persuading an individual to change or renounce their 

faith would be made illegal through Article 302.

Article 302 criminalizes incitement toward apostasy.

1. Any person who publicly incites another 

person(s) to become nonreligious (that is, 

not embrace a religion or belief embraced in 

Indonesia) faces up to two years in prison or a 

Category III fine.

2. Any person who, with violence or threat of 

violence, forces another person to leave his/her 

religion or belief or to change his/her religion 

or belief faces up to four years in prison or a 

Category IV fine.

Articles 303, 304, and 305

These articles focus on religious services and houses of 

worship. Article 303 criminalizes attempts to interrupt or 

disrupt a religious practice or meeting, including through 

noise or any physical disruption. Article 305 makes it 

a crime to damage or burn a house of worship. These 

articles specifically refer to religious services and 

structures, providing an implicit distinction between 

protections for houses of worship and private property 

in general. 

Article 304 emphasizes the interconnectedness of 

freedom of expression and freedom of religion or 

belief by criminalizing derogatory speech directed 

at religious leaders. It punishes a convicted offender 

with a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a 

maximum fine of approximately $3,250.

Local Initiatives Targeting 

Religious Minorities

Reports indicate that political actors linked to 

quasi-governmental religious organizations exploit 

democratic processes at the local level to marginalize 

and discriminate against religious minorities. In West 

Java, politicians inspired by the MUI and other similar 

religious organizations promulgate municipal- and 

regency-level laws using language related to “morality” 

and religion to target minority communities, such as 

Ahmadiyya Muslims, as well as LGBTQI+ individuals. 

These laws put policies in place to “cure” gender and 

sexual minorities, to prevent the construction of minority 

houses of worship in Muslim neighborhoods, and to curb 

the free exercise of religion by minority faiths.

Over the last decade, Indonesia has witnessed a decline 

in acts of collective religious violence, or violence 

perpetrated by one group against another. At the same 

time, the proliferation of municipal- and regency-level 

laws to “protect” public morality against deviant forms of 

Islam and/or behavior has created a legal infrastructure 

that curbs freedom of expression for minority faith 

communities, especially unrecognized communities 

such as Ahmadiyya Muslims. Reports indicate that 

acts of violence may have decreased because religious 

minorities are careful to observe discriminatory laws 

and restrictions and to self-censor their religious 

expression, thereby reducing the risk of exposure to 

violent public reactions.

Houses of Worship

The 2006 joint regulation on houses of worship enables 

ongoing and systematic violations of religious freedom 

against religious minority communities, particularly for 

those not officially recognized. Religious communities 

are often blocked from legally constructing a house of 

worship through burdensome bureaucratic regulations. 

Houses of worship unrecognized by the government 

are more vulnerable to mob attacks or closures by the 

authorities. For example, in February 2023, authorities 

in Bogor, West Java, disbanded the worship service of a 

Pentecostal Church, stating the church did not have a 

permit to hold worship services. 
USCIRF Country Update: Indonesia | January 2024 5

The current process to construct a house of worship can 

take decades. In April in Bogor, West Java, a Christian 

church opened after a 15-year dispute with the local 

authorities. In June in Pinang, Riau Islands Province, 

the local Catholic community finally opened its new 

church after a 33-year struggle. The government has 

long expressed a desire to make the process to legally 

construct a house of worship simpler, including in a July 

announcement by Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil to 

remove parts of the process outlined in the 2006 joint 

regulation. As of the end of 2023, the 2006 joint 

regulation remained unchanged.

Throughout 2023, attacks on houses of worship 

continued. In August in Riau Islands Province, around 

30 people blocked a church community from gathering 

and attacked another church under construction. In 

Padang, West Sumatra Province, a machete-wielding 

man threatened a gathering at a house church.

Indigenous Religions

The Ministry of Home Affairs manages the maintenance 

and distribution of national identification cards, known 

popularly as the KTP. The KTP publicly displays the 

religious identification of the individual, but only if 

the individual is registered as one of Indonesia’s official 

religions. 

Before 2016, followers of indigenous religions were 

forced to list a recognized religion or leave the 

religion column blank. However, leaving it blank can 

impair an individual’s ability to access state services, 

including education and health, as well as affect access 

to employment. Following a 2016 decision by the 

Constitutional Court, indigenous religions can now 

be referenced on the KTP as “Belief in God Almighty.” 

They cannot be explicitly labeled. Throughout 2023, 

members of indigenous faith communities continued to 

push for both official recognition of their religions and 

for the ability to accurately label their religious identity 

on their KTP. Though “Belief in God Almighty” is a 

legally accepted religious designation, many members 

of indigenous religions continue to face legal hurdles in 

acquiring government jobs and having their marriages 

officially recognized due to their religious identity. 

Human rights advocates have noted that prominent 

Islamic organizations are concerned that the recognition 

of indigenous religions on identification cards could lead 

to a decline in the number of registered Muslims, thereby 

decreasing their influence. 

Mandatory Hijab in Public Schools

Indonesia continues to mandate the hijab for girls in state 

schools, regardless of their religious beliefs. In 2021, the 

Supreme Court ruled against President Jokowi’s decree 

allowing the freedom of choice for religious coverings. 

The issue of mandatory hijab remains contested by 

Indonesians. In August 2023, the National Commission 

on Violence Against Women held a hearing on the 

country’s mandatory hijab regulations. At the hearing, 

two Christian men with daughters noted that nonMuslim female students were not exempt from the 

regulations. Currently, 73 hijab mandates remain in effect 

throughout the country and students can be prevented 

from attending class if they do not comply.

Conclusion

Indonesia continues to implement longstanding 

discriminatory laws against minority religious groups 

and, in some cases, has taken recent measures to 

strengthen them. Indonesia’s blasphemy legislation 

remains particularly problematic as individuals 

continue to be targeted for their religious beliefs. This 

will likely remain unchanged pending the February 14, 

2024 elections and worsen as the new criminal code goes 

into effect in 2026. This trajectory is inconsistent with 

Indonesia’s self-described moderate Islam and pluralism, 

as well as its commitments to international human 

rights law as outlined in international treaties such as 

the UDHR.

In its 2023 Annual Report chapter on Indonesia, USCIRF 

recommended that the U.S. government work with the 

Indonesian government to amend the criminal code 

to comply with international human rights standards, 

including on the freedom of religion or belief, and to 

repeal or amend the existing blasphemy laws, including 

Indonesia’s ITE law. This recommendation remains 

relevant as the government of Indonesia is actively 

“socializing” the criminal code’s new regulations, 

which further restrict freedom of religion or belief, 

particularly for those in minority and unrecognized 

religious communities.
UNITED STATES COMMISSION on INTERNATIONAL RELIGIOUS FREEDOM

732 N. Capitol Street, NW, Suite #A714

Washington, DC 20401

202-523-3240

www.USCIRF.gov

@USCIRF

Media@USCIRF.gov

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Danielle Ashbahian

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Patrick Greenwalt

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Scott Weiner

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Luke Wilson

Researcher

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is an independent, bipartisan federal government entity established by the 

U.S. Congress to monitor, analyze, and report on religious freedom abroad. USCIRF makes foreign policy recommendations to the President, 

the Secretary of State, and Congress intended to deter religious persecution and promote freedom of religion and belief.