Are Indonesians truly tolerance?

Are Indonesians truly tolerance?

Muchammad Tholchah, Jakarta

It is commonly assumed that Islam is a tolerant religion,
which is supported by normative evidence based on the Koran and
Hadith.

If we look into Islam from a normative perspective, we will
find that Islam is absolutely just, right, precise, tolerant and
respectful of human rights. However, this approach is not
necessarily an effective way to resolve the contemporary problems
surrounding Islam because real facts often contradict Islamic
teaching.

Etymologically, tolerance means the willingness or an ability
to allow something that one does not like or agree with to happen
or continue. This means everyone has the right to do anything as
long as it does not disturb the rights of others. It also can be
interpreted to mean that nobody has the right to force others to
do or believe as he or she believes.

During the 32-year rule of Soeharto, he forced Indonesians to
attend Pancasila indoctrination classes, which consisted of
teaching moral values such as tolerance as the foundation for
building a relationship with others. This policy resulted in a
"tolerant society".

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim nation,
which means one would expect everyday life to be based on Islamic
teaching, yet corruption, violence and intolerance are
increasing. This can lead people to assume that religion (Islam)
has a double face. On the one hand, it teaches peace and respect
for human rights. On the other hand, its teachings have become
the main support and motivation for committing a crime.

Terrorism and violence can strengthen the assumption that
Indonesian Muslims suffer from pseudotolerance. In the past, most
people pretended to be tolerant and pluralistic. After Soeharto's
fall they began to express their true feelings. The conflict
between Madurese and indigenous peoples in Sambas, West
Kalimantan, or the burning of churches showed that many people
misunderstood the concept of tolerance. Unfortunately, these
people do not, or do not want to, recognize tolerance.

Charles Kimbal, in this book When Religion Becomes Evil
(2003), wrote a religion will become evil if followers suffer
from several diseases, such as blind obedience and justification
of all means. Convicted Bali bombers Amrozi, Ali Ghufron and Imam
Samudra suffer from these diseases.

First, they claim their faith and actions are correct and
others are wrong (misguidance).

Second, they obeyed the order to bomb a public place because
they believed "the instructor" was a smart, right and holy person
who had to be obeyed without criticism.

Third, they often say that if people want to secure their
lives, both personally and communally, they must apply sharia as
the Prophet applied in Medina and Mecca. They insist the
traditions of the Prophet must be completely imitated because it
was during the time of the Prophet that Islam was practiced in
its purest and most ideal form.

Fourth, they would have done anything to gain their objectives
and perform their faith, including the use of violence. They
believe God will forgive them. Last, holy war, what they call
jihad, has to be put into practice in accordance with the concept
of amar makruf nahi munkar (do good, prevent evil).

It will remain impossible to implement tolerance as a value as
long as there are still people who have such beliefs. But that is
not just a problem for Islam, but for other religions as well.

The writer is a postgraduate student of interdisciplinary
Islamic studies at UIN Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta