Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Urges Businesses Not to Commodify Religion

Deputy Minister of Religious Affairs Romo Muhammad Syafi’i has urged business operators not to turn religion into a commodity, responding to an incident at The Sounds Project event involving alcoholic beverages.

“To business operators and event organisers, I stress: do not pursue profit and virality by commodifying religion,” Romo Syafi’i said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

A video circulating on social media showed a booth at the event challenging visitors with religious knowledge in connection with alcoholic drinks.

Syafi’i expressed regret over the incident and called on all parties, including event organisers, to be more careful when using religious attributes, symbols, or messages in promotions.

He also urged law enforcement to investigate the matter professionally. “I ask law enforcement to thoroughly and professionally probe this case, including who conceived the concept, who approved it, who executed it, and who is responsible for the event,” he said.

The deputy minister encouraged the public to learn from a similar 2022 case involving the Holywings bar chain, which used the names Muhammad and Maria in a promotion for free alcoholic beverages. That case resulted in legal proceedings and served as a reminder that freedom of expression has limits, particularly when it touches on respect for religion and public beliefs.

“This case must be the last, not because we forget it, but because we make it the foundation to prevent recurrence,” Syafi’i said.