Indonesia - Page 5

Radical Islamists Demand Ban on Famed Indonesian Dance Music Festival

Hardline Islamists in Indonesia signaled they will keep trying to ban one of Asia’s biggest annual dance music festivals, the Djakarta Warehouse Project (DWP), because it brings “immorality” into the capital city (whose name is more commonly spelled “Jakarta” outside of Indonesia) and violates Islamic law.

Garuda Land, the main stage of Djakarta Warehouse Project

Indonesian Islamic Leader: China’s Muslim Concentration Camps ‘Are Great’

Government and independent officials in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Islamic country, have dismissed assertions by the United States and human rights group that China is abusing millions of predominantly Uighur Muslims in internment camps as “American propaganda,” a report by an Indonesian think-tank revealed this week.

Two ethnic Uighur women pass Chinese paramilitary policemen standing guard outside the Gra

Indonesia Holds Largest One-Day Election in History

Indonesia’s presidential election on Wednesday – the largest single-day election in history, with almost 193 million eligible voters casting ballots for 245,000 candidates spread across 17,000 islands – appears to have returned incumbent President Joko Widodo to office. The race was strongly influenced by Indonesia’s slide into hardline Islamism.

The Associated Press

Christian Graves Desecrated in Indonesia as Islamism Rises

The Jakarta Post on Monday reported on a rash of desecrations directed at Christian graves in the city of Yogyakarta, a spree some local residents believe was a targeted act of intolerance rather than random vandalism. A rising tide of hardline Islamism has become a major factor in the impending Indonesian presidential election.

A desecrated Christian grave at Giriloyo Cemetery in Magelang town, Central Java province.

Google Removes Gay ‘Conversion Therapy’ App Following Outcry

Google has removed an app from the Google Play store which encouraged gay people to go through “conversion therapy,” following complaints from LGBT groups. Google still hasn’t removed an app which allows users to report “heresy” to Indonesia’s strict Muslim government, however, nor has the company removed a Saudi Arabian app which allows men to track women and limit their movement.

Google gay pride (Niv Singer / Flickr / CC / Cropped)