Religion: the spirit of national life

Diorama room, UIN News Online – Religion contributes greatly to the life of the Indonesian nation, even though its relationship with the state is in a tidal current. The religious moral values taught become the spirit adopted in political policies and regulations enacted in the constitution and legislation in the country.

This was the conclusion of the round table discussion entitled “‘Pasang Surut Relasi Agama dan Negara”, organized by the UIN Jakarta alumni association (IKALUIN), on Thursday (01/23/2020) held at Diorama room, campus I of UIN Jakarta.

The discussion presented a number of panelists consisting of a number of lecturers and researchers of UIN Jakarta alumni with various expertise, among them; Head Researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences Ahmad Najib Burhani, Professor of History and Director of the UIN Jakarta Social Trust Fund Amelia Fauzia, and Professor of Islamic Economics and the head of the Sharia Banking Doctorate Program of FEB UIN Jakarta Euis Amelia, FISIP UIN Jakarta lecturer and political researcher Burhanuddin Muhtadi, lecturer and researcher on Human Rights FSH UIN Jakarta Andi Syafrani, lecturer and political observer Adi Prayitno, and lecturer and lawyer Mustoleh Siradj.

In his presentation, Burhanuddin said that the relation between religions and countries in Indonesia was in a negotiated settlement position where religion and the state continued to negotiate with each other. Since Indonesia's independence, he said, religious and state relations were suspecting one another before heading for an important negotiating point in the 1980s.

In this decade, religion and the state can accept each other, especially when religion is no longer formally forced into a political system. At the same time, the state also gives space for religion to express themselves in public life in various fields such as economics and education.

“Partial accommodation with an integrative approach allows the state and religion to influence each other,” he said.

Such accommodation was confirmed by Euis Amalia's exposure from an economic perspective. According to Euis, before the end of the New Order Government, religion (Islam) was accommodated with the permission to establish a number of Islamic banking and financial investment. “One of them is the establishment of Bank Muamalat,” she said.

According to Euis, it continues to this day, where the Islamic banking sector and financial industry continues to develop by becoming one of the alternative national banking and financial products. In the banking sector, she said, several national Islamic banks have targeted the domestic economic segment.

Meanwhile, Andi Syafrani said that religion and the state have close relations. In 1965, he said, the state issued Law Number 1 / PNPS / 1965 regarding Prevention of Abuse and / or Defamation as a legal umbrella that fortified religion from the behavior of individuals or groups that defamed religion and its symbols.

The accommodation of religion by the state, he continued, continues to grow with the increasing number of central and local legislative products based on religious moral values such as the Religious Figures protection bill and the banning of alcohol beverages.

“The prohibition of alcoholic drinks is not merely a reason to disturb health, but also a subjective aspect in the form of a prohibition in Islam and various religions,” said Andi.

Meanwhile, Amelia Fauzia said, the upside downs of religion and the state can also be seen from how the state accommodates aspects of religious philanthropy. One of them, the state issued Law Number 23 of 2011 concerning on the Zakat Management. (usa/zm/adt/hmn)