JK on Poso and Ambon: Those Slandering Me Weren't There
Vice President 10th and 12th of the Republic of Indonesia, Jusuf Kalla (JK), has finally spoken out regarding reports filed against him by several groups to the police in both Jakarta and North Sumatra (Sumut) related to his statements at a forum in the UGM Mosque on 5 March 2026.
According to JK, those reporting him for alleged religious defamation or harassment are merely relying on video clips accompanied by inaccurate narratives concerning his lecture reviewing the Poso and Ambon conflicts. He stated that the individuals creating these narratives and filing police reports on suspicion of religious defamation have slandered him.
In a firm tone, JK remarked that those who have slandered him did not even witness the Poso and Ambon conflicts or the peace efforts directly.
Initially, JK also showed recordings of excerpts from videos of the conflicts in Poso and Ambon.
“Those slandering me, were they ever there [in the midst of the Poso and Ambon conflicts]? I was there. Hamid [former Minister of Law and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin] was there, Uceng [JK’s spokesperson Husain Abdullah] as a journalist at the time went to see,” said JK to journalists gathered at his home in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, on Saturday (18/4).
Hamid and Husain accompanied JK during the press conference.
According to JK, the conflict situations in Poso (Central Sulawesi) and Ambon (Maluku) in the late 1990s and early 2000s were more brutal than the G30S/PKI incident. The conflicts, which began between residents in each region, later developed into ones with religious overtones, or SARA (ethnicity, religion, race, and inter-group relations).
Previously, the Executive Board of the Indonesian Christian Youth Movement (GAMKI) along with several organisations reported JK to the police.
GAMKI General Chairman Sahat Sinurat stated that JK’s remarks were deemed to offend Christian teachings and caused a stir in the lecture at the UGM Mosque discussing the Poso and Ambon conflicts. He emphasised that Christian teachings never justify killing as a path to heaven.
Additionally, on 14 April, a similar report emerged from North Sumatra. Several organisations under the North Sumatra Civil Society Alliance also reported JK to the North Sumatra Police Headquarters with allegations of blaspheming religious teachings.
Meanwhile, Human Rights Minister Natalius Pigai encouraged resolving the polemic through dialogue, not the legal route.
“As Human Rights Minister, I disagree with the police report against Mr JK. I firmly reject it. To be honest, there is no benefit to it either,” said Pigai as quoted by Antara on Wednesday (15/4).
The Poso conflict in Central Sulawesi occurred around 1998-2001. The communal riots are often viewed as conflicts with religious nuances. However, the root causes are said to involve economic disparities, local political competition, and the impact of transmigration programmes that altered the region’s demographics.
In 2001, JK, then serving as Coordinating Minister for People’s Welfare in President Megawati Soekarnoputri’s cabinet, led the mediation process in Malino, South Sulawesi. As a Sulawesi figure, JK successfully pushed for the Malino I Declaration after gathering conflicting Islamic and Christian leaders to agree on peace.
Meanwhile, the Ambon conflict was a communal riot that began from individual disputes and quickly escalated into a religious-tinged storm in Maluku province around 1999 to 2002.
JK, at that time Coordinating Minister for People’s Welfare, gathered Islamic and Christian leaders from Ambon for mediation in Malino. The result was the peace agreement or Malino II Declaration on 12 February 2002.
In response to the buzz around JK’s lecture, the administrator of the UGM Campus Mosque YouTube channel conveyed a message through a pinned comment starting Monday (12/4).
“Dear congregation, we earnestly request that you watch the video in full, not just the circulating clips. Often, incomplete excerpts can cause misunderstandings because the context of the discussion is not properly conveyed,” wrote the admin in the comment section.
CNNIndonesia.com obtained permission from the Chairman of the UGM Mosque Takmir, Muhammad Yusuf, to quote the content of that comment.
“Let us act fairly in assessing something, by viewing it comprehensively before drawing conclusions or spreading it further. If further clarification is needed, please contact the relevant parties directly. Thank you for your attention and wisdom,” it concluded.