TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The spokesperson for Sampang's Shiite Association, Iklil al-Miklal, said that Shiites in Sampang, Madura, have yet to enjoy their right to adhere to a particular faith - as such, the word 'independence' has no more meaning than just mere lip service. The reason being, Sampang Shiites continue to face discriminatory treatment, as they have yet to be allowed to return to their respective homes, and has to make do with living in makeshift shelters since violent outbreaks that specifically targeted the Shiite minority, began in the past few years.

"Absolute independence and freedom is a concept that is beginning to feel foreign to us - because in a literal sense, independence entails non-discrimination and oppression by the majority to minority groups," said Iklil to Tempo at the Puspa Agro Shelter in Sidoarjo's Taman District in East Java on Wednesday, August 17, 2016.

Iklil calls on the government to quickly intervene to allow displaced Shiites to be able to return to their homes, as well as guarantees that their lives and belongings will not be seized nor ransacked by groups that are unsympathetic to their faith. "To date, we don't even have the right to live in our own homes," Iklil said.

If the government does not actively intervene, continued Iklil, it will provide a bad precedent that may lead the way for similar abuses to happen to other religious minorities. "We really domt want what had happened to us to occur yet again, with other religious minorities," said Iklil.

Iklil also said that the providing temporary shelters is unsustainable in the long run. Currently, the government disbursed some Rp 700.000 per month for affected residents. Iklil also argued that whereas the nominal is actually enough for the displaced to survive on, it cannot erase the emotional distress that the forced displacement has caused.

Iklil also added that the conflict - which began around four years ago, and claimed the lives of one Shiite follower and destroyed scores of homes owned by Shiites in Sampang - is far more complicated than a simple ideological misunderstanding. Rather, continued Iklil, the issue has become much more complex through the government's politics, which ultimately lead to the shielding of the perpetrators of the acts from the court.

Around 332 Sampang Shiites have been living in temporary housings since the violent outbreak began in August 2012, when Sunni Muslims ransacked and destroyed Shiite properties in Sampang. 20 homes were deliberately burned in the hamlet of Nangkernang, Karang Gayam in the district of Omben, as well as the hamlet of Gading Laok, Bluuran, in the district of Karang Penang.

Not only did the mob razed the homes to the ground, they killed cattle, processed tobacco, bamboo, and acacia forests owned by Shiites. Mochamad Kosim was killed during the skirmish, while scores of others suffered from machete wounds and head traumas after they were pelted with hard and sharp objects.

NUR HADI