http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/08/31/minister-calls-ahmadiyah-be-disbanded.html-0
Minister calls for Ahmadiyah to be disbanded The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Tue, 08/31/2010 10:08 AM | Headlines Suryadharma Ali Religious Affairs Minister Suryadharma Ali said Monday that the Jamaah Ahmadiyah faith - who claim to be Muslim - had to be broken up, as followers violated regulations and were not Muslim. The minister was quoted as saying after a hearing at the House of Representatives that Ahmadiyah, which has 200,000 followers across the country, "must be disbanded immediately". If not, "problems would continue". It was the first clear statement from the minister following a number of attacks on the congregation and their mosques in the last few years, the most recent in Kuningan, West Java, late last month. In West Lombok, 33 families who are followers of Ahmadiyah have not returned from their refuge as of April, fearing for their safety from residents who attacked them in 2006. Suryadharma reiterated his earlier statement that the group violated a 2008 joint ministerial decree on Ahmadiyah, which stated that members of the faith could not propagate their teachings. The decree issued by the Religious Affairs Ministry, the Attorney General's Office and the Home Ministry, however, stated that Ahmadiyah followers could continue practising their faith through prayers, visit to mosques and other activities. The decree is based on a 1965 law on the prevention of blasphemy. In the previous Cabinet under President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, then vice president Jusuf Kalla had said Ahmadiyah would not be banned, but its members were not allowed to propagate their beliefs, which include the controversial tenet that the Prophet Muhammad was not the final prophet, as mainstream Muslims believe. Ahmadiyah members have repeatedly said their teachings did not violate Islam, while others insist Ahmadiyah saw its founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, as the last prophet. Another group, the Indonesian Ahmadiyah Movement (GAI), regards Ahmad as only an Islamic reformist leader, and was thus not subject to the decree. The belief that anyone other than Muhammad is the last prophet "is in basic contradiction with Islam," Suryadharma was quoted as saying. "If that is what is called freedom of worship then that freedom has gone too far," news portal tempointeraktif.com reported. The basic right of other Muslims, he said, "is the right that must be protected when one group says the Prophet Muhammad is not the last prophet." More discussions about banning the group are scheduled for after the Idul Fitri holidays, the minister said. Following the issuance of the 2008 decree on Ahmadiyah, the ministry said the public would be allowed to act as a watchdog to ensure Ahmadiyah's compliance. The decree also threatens penalties for anyone committing violence against Ahmadiyah members. However, sporadic attacks against the group have continued unpunished. In Kuningan regency, Ahmadiyah members clashed with hard-line Muslim organizations who demanded the banning of the group. Several houses were damaged and three were injured in Manis Lor village, where 3,000 of the more than 4,000 residents were Ahmadiyah followers. Suryadharma said the 2008 decree was not being enforced effectively, while police say their main concern was to prevent clashes. Related News >> a.. Ahmadiyah must be disbanded: Minister b.. Minister calls for Ahmadiyah to be disbanded c.. Issue: 'Be strict in call to disband Ahmadiyah' d.. Minister urges sect followers to stop spreading faith [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
