Thank you for the very informative article. It is truly bizarre that President Obama would pay such a sweeping compliment to a country that has so recently shown so much religious intolerance.

For anyone interested, please visit http://www.thepersecution.org/ and add "Indonesia" to the Search box...it will bring up relevant articles on Human Rights Injustices. And this is religious persecution just of the members of Ahmadiyya Muslim Community.

This article explains the complex state of freedom of religion in Indonesia better than Obama's strong-on-rhetoric short-on-reality speech.

Very well written article by Ashley McGuire because Indonesia is not as tolerant as President Obama made it seem. As an Ahmadi Muslim, we strongly believe in the separation of church and state. For more information, please visit alislam.org.

On a side note, Ahmadi Muslims, do believe that Prophet Muhummad was the last law-bearing prophet. Ahmadi Muslims believe that Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, was the Promised Reformer, and he was sent to revive the true teachings of Islam, in accordance with the sayings of Prophet Muhummad.

Very well-written article that sheds light on some of the key elements of Indonesian constitution and what it means for minorities. Indonesia is certainly not as tolerant as one would like to believe.

I am an Ahmadi Muslim and I can attest to the fact that Indonesian Ahmadis have to continuously fear for their lives and property. The country is not safe for those who want to believe in something different.

Also, Ahmadis believes in Prophet Mohammad (peace be upon him as the las law-bearing prophet. We believe that Ahmad of Qadian (peace be with him) only came to revive the teachings of Islam in the footsteps of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh).

Tolerance? Indonesia is far from tolerant. Ask Hindus in Bali (where they constitute the majority) how they were, and are, treated by the national government. Ask Christians in Timor. Ask Jews who aren't recognized as one of the accepted religions and cannot enter the country if they have a passport stamp from Israel. Tolerant? Militant Islamic groups (and yes, the very violent, homicidal type) targeted and continue to target gathering places for non-Muslims, tourists, and others who they despise. And that includes schools for children that have to shut down when threatened and are forced to employ very strict security measures so they can actually teach (secular curriculums so there's no mention of anything involving religion). Tolerance? If that's "tolerance" and the President sees it as such, we should be very alarmed.

Whereever Muslims are in majority, it is a land of intolerance and hatred towards non-Muslims.

Jihadist writes: "Back to Indonesia, they've only come out of the "dark" after decades of internal conflicts to keep their nation together and with authoritarian governance."

An Islamic supremacist like Jihadist is incapable of seeing that Indonesia is walking into the "dark" hell hole that Islam creates. The normal progression of Islamic takeover was interrupted for a few centuries for Indonesia, but now it is back on track. Aceh is merely leading the rest of the country. The hate for the non-muslims, the destruction of non-muslim culture, the destruction of indigenous culture, and worshipping of anything and everything arabic has resumed in Indonesia. Blasphemy law is weilded like a weapon in all Muslim countries and Indonesia is no different.
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http://english.aljazeera.net/news/asia-pacific/2010/04/20104208101575962.html

The government used the blasphemy law in the past to outlaw religious groups, including Ahmadiya, a minority Islamic group banned in 2008 whose members identify themselves as Muslims but do not believe in the core tenet of Islam that Muhammad is the last prophet.

They also say conservative Islamic groups have used the law as justification
for violent attacks on minority religious groups.

'Blow to freedom'

Human Rights Watch (HRW), a US based rights organisation, said the ruling "dealt a severe blow to religious freedom" in the world's third-largest democracy.

"Indonesia's laws should protect those who peacefully express religious views and punish those who threaten to use violence against others, not the other way around," Elaine Pearson of HRW said.

The US commission on international religious freedom, a non-partisan body that advises the US government, said the ruling may embolden religious extremists and foster sectarian strife.

Chairul Annam, one of the lawyers arguing for the law's repeal, said "the judges closed their eyes and hearts.

We are very sorry that discrimination suffered by minorities in this country was not recognised by the court."
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Obama's partiality towards Islam makes him ignore the violence, discrimination, and hate that the non-muslims in muslim countries (including the famous moderate malaysia and indonesia) suffer.

Hi Ashley,

Becket Fund for Religious Liberty? Nice work the organisation is doing, defending religious rights everywhere. But did this organisation not, once before, defended a university for sacking a fellow for not agreeing to certain church doctrine? I could be wrong.

Back to Indonesia, they've only come out of the "dark" after decades of internal conflicts to keep their nation together and with authoritarian governance.

Read President Obama's speech in the context of the President's target audience - urging Indonesians to do the right thing in encouraging their new awareness of democracy, human rights, good and transparent governance and justice.

ICT tools is changing Indonesia's very lively public discourse and national direction for better or for worse. No one said democracy is not messy and Indonesians know it.

“Above all, the president's remarks Wednesday were a missed opportunity to remind Indonesia of its international commitments to ensuring religious freedom for all faiths, not just the six it likes.’

Indonesia ensures religious freedom of one so-called religion which is Islam, and claims to be tolerant toward five others. Even though this is not acceptable by civilized people it is a big improvement on those that are tolerant toward only one religion; their own.

Indonesia not tolerant? Really? Pleez. They still haven't genocided the remaining 64,000 West Papuans.

WMarkW writes: "We need a way to run our cars and airplanes with electricity or hydrogen first."

In this interconnected world, no one can do without the other. They cannot drink or eat their oil. They need us just as we need them. Is that reason that we should stop speaking for what is right? Riding in a car or flying in a plane when you hate yourself because you sold yourself for the proverbial few shillings is not much fun. But then who knows, appeasement for the sake of riding cars and air planes, the OIC may just confirm the Islamic saying that the Kafirs will sell you the rope with which they will be hanged.

Appeasement will not work. Those who wish to kill us quote the Quran and the example of Muhammad to justify their actions. We need to confront that ideology and not try to appease it.Posted by: AKafir
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We need a way to run our cars and airplanes with electricity or hydrogen first.

Obama is trying to appease the Muslims. The American Government apparently thinks that by appeasing Islam they will minimize the recruitment of soldiers for the jihadists around the world. By confronting the ideology of Islam, they are convinced that will anger young muslims who will be motivated to actively pursue violence against American Interests.
That is an argument not without merit. That is the reason why Bush also pursued the line of Islam is a great religion and a religion of Peace. However, he did not bend over backwards as Obama is doing and actively trying to curry favor by complimenting Islam at the cost of American Ideals.
Islam hates non-muslims. Kafirs are oppressed and suppressed around the world in muslim countries. The laws of the muslim countries express that hate by treating the non-muslims as second class humans. Blasphemy laws are merely an expression of that hate and are used by the muslims to subjugate the Kafirs. Example: It is very common for muslims to say very offensive and hurtful things to a non-muslims about that Kafirs faith and keep asking the Kafir to convert to Islam. If the poor non-muslim forgets momentarily her second class human status and ends up speaking up, as a christian woman did by asking what good had Muhammad ever done, blasphemy charges are filed and the Kafir and her family are in serious trouble. They will suffer serious monetary harm for sure, but could end up being killed either by the government or by some zealot muslim. Before dismissing such a scenario, chenc and see how often that happens.

Obama could have used the bully pulpit to encourage muslims to look at their treatment of their Kafir citizens and challenge them to join the 21st century. Instead he reassures them that they are great as they are and hence their brutality of the non-muslims among them is totally acceptable to the US. That is an immoral stand of convenience that will come back to bite. Obama puts the blame on the US for "misunderstandings" with the Islamic world.

Appeasement will not work. Those who wish to kill us quote the Quran and the example of Muhammad to justify their actions. We need to confront that ideology and not try to appease it.

President Obama is NOT a "secret Muslim."

He's a secret Indonesian.