Indonesia`s Political Year Prone to Politicization of Religion
1 November 2017 07:58 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The President’s special envoy for the interfaith dialogue and harmony Din Syamsuddin recently said that the 2018 Regional Election is prone to the politicization of religious issues.
“True harmony will be difficult to be realized because of sectarian politics,” said Din Syamsuddin after participating in a discussion with the chairman of the Indonesian Bishops' Conference (KWI) Ignatius Suharyo on Tuesday, October 31.
According to Din, Indonesia’s political year of 2018 and 2019 could potentially damage inter-religious harmony. Other than social gaps and economics, he reasons, non-religious factors that can trigger a social-divide are political issues.
“The harmony we have built will face some challenges as [Indonesia’s] political year comes closer. It is why we must approach our people and bring them to a collective consciousness that we have so much in common even though we have differences in our religion and ethnicity,” said Din Syamsuddin.
Din Syamsuddin urged people to be more focused on the similarity between fellow countrymen during the 2018 and 2019 political year, instead of focusing on society’s differences.
ANTARA
