TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesia must speak up when the "democratic" United States of America violates the fundamental principles of its own democracy. The egalitarian spirit of democracy recognizes equality of all before the law, but President Donald Trump's executive order banning citizens of seven Muslim nations from entering the country is naked discrimination.
As the nation with the world's largest Muslim population, as well as the third largest democracy, this republic should emphasize its opposition to discrimination on religious grounds. The government's appeal for Indonesians in the United States to obey the law, understand their rights and pay careful attention to their surroundings is a good example of responsible conduct. But this alone is not enough because the problem lies with the administration of Donald Trump, which is less than a month old.
In order to protect Americans from terrorism launched from Muslim countries, President Trump has initiated extreme measures. He issued an executive order banning citizens of seven countries with Muslim majority populations Syria, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Sudan, Libya, and Somalia from entering the United States in the next 90 days and placed the admission of refugees on hold for 120 days.
Indonesia is not one of the seven countries. But given the warped reasoning behind the policy, which is not in line with its main objective (preventing terrorism originating from Muslim nations), Trump's executive orders could take aim at anyone-including Indonesia. Elements of terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda or ISIS are flourishing in nations racked by armed conflict, such as Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen. But including Iran among those nations deemed a terrorist threat to the US was an arbitrary move.
The Shia country of Iran will never be a haven for Sunni terror groups such as Al-Qaeda or ISIS, while the Hizbullah militia, the only armed group close to Iran, has never operated far from the South Lebanese-Syrian border. It is clear that 'de-Obama-ization' has colored the policy of making enemies of immigrants from Iran, by eliminating the policy of former president Obama-who worked hard to improve relations with Iran after it signed a nuclear agreement last year.
There is a lesson to be learned from this populism of Donald Trump that is endangering the democratic tradition of the US. Democracy was built through long struggle and sacrifice. Therefore, the nation should clearly distance itself from - not embrace - the anti-immigrant, anti-faith group or anti-ethnic minority sentiment that is growing among the people like mushrooms in the wet season, but in contradiction to democratic principles.
This way, confidence in the constitution and the basis of the state must be stronger than pressure from certain groups wanting to hitch a ride on this sentiment for their own interests.(*)
Read the full story in this week's edition of Tempo English Magazine
