Indigenous Beliefs Marginalized by National Positive Law

Mariana Natania Marunduri

Internship

05 May 2026 · 13:16 05 May 2026 13:16 WIB 4 minutes reading time: 4 minutes 2 read

The position of Penghayat Kepercayaan as a marginalized group is often subject to systemic discrimination through a national legal framework that is not inclusive.

Sapta Dharma, himpunan Penghayat Kepercayaan di Kota Surabaya, dalam acara Pelatihan Hukum dan Hak Asasi Manusia oleh Center for Legal Pluralism Studies (CLeP) — Salah satu kelompok Penghayat Kepercayaan, yakni Satpa Dharma di Kota Surabaya (Source: Dokumentasi Pribadi)

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Table of Contents

Performative Religious Freedom
The Adminduk Law and its 'Haphazard' Settlement

Legal Literacy - Indonesia is a pluralistic country. The existence of 17,380 islands and more than 700 languages shows that pluralism is a concept close to a multicultural country like Indonesia. In terms of beliefs, diversity is reflected in the existence of traditional beliefs that are customary to certain groups. However, this diversity of beliefs is not welcomed by the state.

Performative Religious Freedom

The exclusivity of the state towards diversity of beliefs is evidenced by the existence of Presidential Decree of the Republic of Indonesia Number 1/PNPS/1965 on the Prevention of Abuse and/or Blasphemy of Religion ("Law No. 1/PNPS/1965"). The high intensity of using the nomenclature "religion practiced in Indonesia" in this regulation shows that a belief gains its validity when it is recognized by positive law. Thus, it gives the impression that freedom of religion in Article 28E paragraph (1) of the Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia ("1945 CONSTITUTION") is just a sweetener that seems to legitimize the existence of beliefs outside the majority belief in Indonesia.

The Explanation of Article 1 of Law No. 1/PNPS/1965 states that what is meant by "religion practiced in Indonesia" is "the religions practiced by almost the entire population of Indonesia", namely Islam, Christianity, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism (confusius). Thus, the state seems to agree that minorities do not need to be given equal recognition and protection with the majority because of the validity of "religion practiced in Indonesia" is measured by the quantity of adherents.

Although the explanation of Article 1 of Law No. 1/PNPS/1965 later states that beliefs outside of 'religion practiced in Indonesia' remains protected, this is followed by the statement: "With regard to mystical bodies/streams, the Government is trying to channel them towards a healthy view and towards God Almighty." The use of the phrase 'healthy' is derogative. Through this nomenclature, it can be interpreted that adherents of a mystical body/stream are 'sick' and need to be 'nourished' by embracing the majority faith. This shows that the state is still biased in giving recognition. The state considers that the small quantity of adherents is justification for neglect. Thus, the state is violating its responsibility to be inclusive of minorities.