Poroz Protests Indosat's Advertisement 'Calls Inviting Zakat, Don't Answer! It Might Be a Scammer'

The Association of Zakat Management Organizations (Poroz), as a forum for zakat management institutions in Indonesia, has expressed strong protests and deep objections to the content of an outdoor advertisement by IM3 Indosat found on public transport modes. The advertisement displays the message: “Calls Inviting Zakat, Don’t Answer! It Might Be a Scammer.” Poroz assesses the diction used in the advertisement as highly inappropriate, tending towards provocation, and capable of harming public trust in the national zakat movement, which is being built with full integrity by official institutions. Poroz General Chairman Bukhori Muslim emphasised that the advertisement carries a tone of stigmatisation of religious obligations. According to Bukhori, positioning “zakat invitations” as synonymous with or indicative of fraudulent actions (scamming) constitutes stigmatisation of one of the highly respected pillars of Islam. Bukhori explained that this narrative can create doubts among the public in responding to educational services and zakat collection carried out by official institutions, which have thus far operated in accordance with Law No. 23 of 2011 on Zakat Management. According to Bukhori, as a major telecommunications company, IM3 Indosat should demonstrate social responsibility by using more neutral examples of anti-fraud education without cornering certain religious rituals.