Sita W. Dewi, Jakarta – Various groups condemned Friday evening's incident at a Salihara venue in Jakarta, where the police broke up a book launch for Canadian liberal Muslim activist Irshad Manji.
The author was supposed to discuss her new book, Allah, Liberty and Love at the event.
"The police's way to disband the event was unacceptable. Why didn't they arrest people who disrupted the discussion, but granted their wishes instead?" the groups said in a joint statement sent to The Jakarta Post on Saturday.
The groups, which included the Salihara community, said that the discussion was part of citizens' rights to gather, to get information and to express opinion, as guaranteed by the 1945 Constitution.
"The police's argument that the event was illegal because it didn't have permit is baseless," they said, adding that the police had violated laws by allowing hard-line groups, such as the Betawi Brotherhood Forum (FBR), the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) and the Betawi People's Forum (Forkabi) – who were at the venue during the incident – to trespass on private property and to launch threats.
Manji is scheduled to speak at several other occasions in Jakarta on Saturday, including those hosted by the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Jakarta branch and the feminist Jurnal Perempuan Foundation, and in Surakarta, Central Java.
The committee says that its legal team has proposed to change the venues. "In Surakarta, those hard-line groups have expressed their rejection of Irshad Manji," the committee said.
Manji was about to begin to speak on Friday evening when a police officer stepped in and announced that the book discussion should be called off, citing "residents' complaints and rejection" as the reasons. The hard-line groups were among the protesting residents.
"The local residents disapproved of this activity, and this activity involves a foreigner, therefore it requires a special permit from the Jakarta Police," Pasar Minggu Police Chief. Comr. Adri Desas Furyanto, said Friday night.
The joint statement represents the Salihara Community, the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute Foundation (YLBHI), human rights watchdog ELSAM, the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), LGBT group Our Voice, AJI Jakarta, the Indonesian Women's Voice, publisher Rene Book, Perempuan Mahardika, KEMI, Peace Women Across the Globe and SEJUK.