Jakarta – The bravery of then-Bekasi mayor Rahmat Effendi in 2019 to defend the Catholic community's freedom to worship at Santa Clara Church in North Bekasi, in the face of intolerant

Monique Handa Shafira, Jakarta – Singkawang, a city in West Kalimantan, has once again been named Indonesia's most tolerant city for the third consecutive time by the human rights group

Andreas Harsono – In a step forward for freedom of religion and belief in Indonesia, citizens from smaller religious groups are now permitted to change the religious identity on their i

Wijayanti Putri, Solo – Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka said on Friday that Solo, under his leadership, has evolved into one of Indonesia's most tolerant cities, vowing to further augment

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Antara, Jakarta – Vice Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning and Vice Head of National Agrarian Agency Raja Juli Antoni ensured that no discrimination will take place in the

Padang – Indonesian Vice President Ma'ruf Amin responded to the proposal for a new system to control and monitor places of worship.

Christian leaders in Indonesia have joined other faith groups to criticize a proposed government plan to control activities in religious worship places for the sake of tackling radicali

Devy Ernis, Jakarta – A junior high school teacher in Lamongan shaved the heads of dozens of hijabi students for not wearing an inner hijab or ciput as it is locally known.

Jakarta – A school on Indonesia's main island has partially shaved the heads of more than a dozen girls, its headmaster said Monday, after they were accused of wearing their Islamic hij

Nivell Rayda, Tondano, Indonesia – It is the Sabbath, and the parking lot of an otherwise desolate compound on the edge of the Indonesian town of Tondano in North Sulawesi is filled wit

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M Julnis Firmansyah, Jakarta – Ministry of Religion spokeswoman Anna Hasbie on Friday announced that the ministry is studying the controversy involving the Al Zaytun Islamic Boarding Sc

The Indonesian government has decided to ease rules for building houses of worship, including churches, by initiating changes to a 17-year-old decree, considered a major barrier to such

Jakarta – The chairperson of Indonesia's peak Islamic body the Indonesian Ulama Council (MUI), Utang Ranuwijaya, says that Ministry of Religious Affairs and Ministry of Home Affairs Joi

Jakarta – Reflecting on the values of the state ideology Pancasila, Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy Executive Director Halili Hasan says that they are often defeated by the cas

Jakarta – Hundreds of congregation members of the Indonesian Christian Church (GKI) Yasmin in Bogor, West Java, had perhaps been exhausted after 15 years of fighting for their freedom o

Radhiyya Indra, Jakarta – Cilegon received the lowest score of any of the Indonesian cities studied in the 2022 Tolerant Cities Index Report by the SETARA Institute, ranking 94th, with

Rindi Ariska, Jakarta – Human rights advocacy group Setara Institute released the report of the 2022 Tolerance City Index revealing the most and the least tolerant city in Indonesia.

It came a decade-and-a-half too late, by Bogor Mayor Bima Arya's own admission, but the Taman Yasmin Indonesia Christian Church (GKI Yasmin) congregation now finally, officially have a

Jakarta – The results of Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy research reveal that the city of Cilegon in Banten province occupies the 94th position or the lowest ranking in the 202

Ahead of Easter, Christians in Indonesia's West Java province are left in the lurch after their church, functioning from a building without a permit, was sealed off by the administratio

M Rosseno Aji, Jakarta – The Indonesian Churches Association ("PGI") condemned the alleged attempt to forcefully stop religious worship at Gereja Kristen Kemah Daud in Rajabasa Jaya sub

Amid concerns over cases of obstruction of worship for religious minorities including Christians by Muslims in Indonesia, President Jokowi Widodo has told heads of provinces and distric

Jakarta – The Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy has reminded President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo that there is still widespread opposition to minority groups performing worship and th

Zainal Abidin Bagir – Indonesia's new Criminal Code (KUHP) has been decried as a major step backwards for Indonesian democracy.

Fajar Pebrianto, Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo on Tuesday bemoaned the ban against the establishment of houses of worship that still persists to this day in the form of local

Anggi Muliawati, Jakarta – Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial) found there were 26 cases of intolerance recorded by the media as occurring in Indonesia in 2022.

BTV, Bogor – A Christian community in the Jakarta suburb of Bogor on Sunday could finally hold Christmas mass at their own church which took 15 years to build due to resistance from har

Max Lane – The popularity of a recent image lamenting the wearing of conservative dress, particularly headscarves, by girls in Indonesia's state schools have highlighted philosophical t

Devi Ernis, Jakarta – The Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarim lamented the reported discrimination experienced by a high school student of SMAN 2 Depok.

Jakarta – Indonesian mainstream and social media are reporting street demonstrations in dozens of cities across Iran following the detention and death of a young woman because she did n

Jakarta – The Cilegon government's refusal to allow a church in the steel town of Banten province does not bode well for Indonesia's reputation as it prepares to host a major internatio

Ryan Dagur – Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta has underlined the importance of the papal document on human fraternity in building a prosperous country amid serious challenges, inc

Ana Salva – Last July, the debate over the wearing of the hijab again caused a stir in Indonesia, when a 16-year-old Muslim student was allegedly forced to wear it by teachers at a publ

A Catholic bishop has accused a top district official in Indonesia's Maluku province of not supporting religious groups' effort to promote tolerance in the region that has witnessed dea

Katharina Reny Lestari – The denial of building permit to a Protestant church in Cilegon city in Indonesia's westernmost province of Banten goes against the spirit of religious moderati

Sari Oktafiana, Jakarta – Late last month, a high school teacher in the Indonesian province of Yogyakarta reportedly forced a female Muslim student to wear the hijab – veils worn by Mus

Elle Yap – A debate in Indonesia that centers around schoolgirls being forced to wear hijabs even when they are not Muslim has reached a crisis point as more and more incidents and comp

Linda Yulisman, Jakarta – A recent incident in which a Muslim student in Indonesia was allegedly forced to wear a hijab by her teachers, which led to her depression, has again highlight

Yogyakarta (Antara) – The headmaster and three teachers of a state high school in Yogyakarta have been suspended by Governor Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X following reports that a female

Jakarta – The Setara Institute for Democracy and Peace is asking Education, Culture, Research and Technology Minister Nadiem Makarim to take firm action against state schools forcing st

A grade 10 student at a public high school in Banguntapan, Yogyakarta has moved to another school after she claimed teachers forced her to wear a hijab.

Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos-Horta has said he will be nominating two moderate Indonesian Muslim organizations for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Konradus Epa – The Community of Sant'Egidio, an Italian-based Catholic lay group, and Indonesia's biggest moderate Islamic organization have signed a pact to continue working together t

Katharina Reny Lestari – Christians have urged the Indonesian army to take strict action against any group trying to sow discord and create divisions in society after a video of a large

Ryan Dagur – Timor-Leste's new president Jose Ramos-Horta has pledged to maintain democracy and peace in the Catholic-majority country stressing his commitment to defend all sections of

Ryan Dagur – Catholic-majority Timor-Leste will be the first country in the world to adopt a papal-endorsed document promoting peace and harmony between Christians and Muslims.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Timor-Leste's president-elect Jose Ramos-Horta says he will adopt a papal-endorsed document on human fraternity into the school curriculum to maintain interreligio

A'an Suryana, Norshahril Saat – This year's Ramadhan saw less bickering among Indonesian Muslims about the appropriate start date for the blessed month.