Moh. Nadlir, Jakarta – The government says there are still groups of social organisations (ormas) and individuals that explicitly want to replace the national ideology of Pancasila.
This was revealed by Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo during a National Defense and Archipelago Outlook Coordinating Meeting at the Human Resources Development Agency building at the Home Affairs Ministry in Jakarta on Wednesday October 17.
“People can equivocate about whatever they like, but the evidence demonstrates that there are still groups, individuals who explicitly and openly want to replace Pancasila”, said Kumolo.
According to Kumolo, these ormas and individuals defend themselves as hard as they can not wanting to be labeled anti-Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution (UUD 1945, unity in diversity (Bhinneka Tunggal Ika) and the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI).
Kumolo however declined to say which ormas groups and individuals he was referring to as anti-Pancasila. “These people openly defend themselves as hard as they can, yet their speeches are clear”, said the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician.
Kumolo believes that these ormas groups and individuals represent a concrete threat to the survival of the nation. “A minor example, they get into higher educational [institutions], they baiat [inaugurate, appoint, promote] our university students, this has been ignored for 10 years, this is a threat to the nation”, he said.
According to Kumolo, the government gives all citizens the freedom to establish an ormas but only on the condition that its ideology and activities do not deviate from the ideology practiced by the state.
“Please go ahead, ormas who want to proselytize yes well it must be in accordance with the Al-Quran, those who are Christian, Hindu, Buddhist, please go ahead. But don’t deviate from aqidah [the basic tenants of Islam, Islamic teachings, morals], let alone replace Pancasila. This quite frankly is what we are facing”, he said.
Kumolo added that all parties have the authority to confront this threat, it is not just the obligation of Polri [national police] and the TNI (Indonesian military).
“This isn’t [just] the responsibility of the TNI-Polri, but all of us together. Pancasila, Bhinneka Tunggal Ika, NKRI and UUD 1945 are final and non-negotiable. Laws allow freedom of association, to establish any kind of ormas, but they must be bound by this”, he said.
Because of this therefore, the government in July issued Government Regulation in Lieu of Law Number 2/2017 on Social Organisations (Preppy Ormas).
“The government was forced to issue the Preppu. It wasn’t to put pressure on any group, but the state is obliged to draft regulations that are firm and protect Indonesia. So we didn’t all of a sudden just make the Perppu but we anticipated it together”, he said.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was Mendagri: Masih Ada Ormas dan Perorangan yang Ingin Ganti Pancasila.]
