BANTEN PROVINCE: MUSLIM HEARTLAND PLUS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 001786 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/PD, DRL/IRF, NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/22/2018 TAGS: PREL KIRF KPAO KISL ID SUBJECT: BANTEN PROVINCE: MUSLIM HEARTLAND PLUS MULTICULTURAL HUB REF: A. JAKARTA 1734 ¶B. JAKARTA 245 JAKARTA 00001786 001.2 OF 002 Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Mission team visited Banten Province in western Java, September 18-19. Pol/C spoke about the U.S, presidential process to a group of 300 students at a new Christian university. Administrators said the school has had largely positive experiences with its Muslim neighbors. ¶2. (C) SUMMARY (Con'd): Pol/C also visited a strongly Muslim region in Banten. While underscoring the importance of Islam in Indonesia, contacts expressed support for religious freedom. They also emphasized the need for better governance for Indonesia's future. Overall, Banten is a microcosm of Indonesia's deep religiousity--which at times can lead to friction between groups--as well as its overarching commitment to pluralism. END SUMMARY. OUTREACH IN BANTEN'S "MULTICULTURAL HUB" ¶3. (C) Pol/C and POL FSN visited Banten, a province located on the western edge of Java Island and across the Sunda Strait from southern Sumatra, September 18-19. Banten--which is adjacent to Jakarta and West Java Province--has approximately 10 million residents. Pol/C spoke September 19 at the University of Pelita Harapan, a Christian school located in Tangerang, a section of Banten located next to Jakarta. The University has about 10,000 students, including many who are Muslim. It was founded in 1992 by James Riady, the Chinese Indonesian head of the Lippo Group, one of the largest conglomerates in Indonesia. Noting that Tangerang was Banten's "multicultural hub," administrators said the school has had largely positive experiences with its Muslim neighbors. ¶4. (SBU) About 300 students participated in the event. Pol/C's PowerPoint presentation focused on the U.S. presidential election, noting that House, Senate, gubernatorial and other races will also be held in 2008. Pol/C discussed the Democratic and Republican Party candidates and their policy views. He also discussed the role of the political conventions and the general election campaign, culminating in the election on November 4. Pol/C also spent some time discussing the Electoral College and how it works. ¶5. (SBU) The question-and-answer session was lively, with the students asking many well-informed, probing questions about the process and the views of the candidates, including on social issues, economic problems on Wall Street, and Senator Obama's time spent in Indonesia as a youth. Perhaps because the group was mostly Christian, there were relatively few questions on Middle East issues, which is usually a key interest of students in this Muslim-dominated nation. VISITING THE "MUSLIM HEARTLAND" ¶6. (C) U.S. team also visited the Serang region of Banten Province. An area where an historic Islamic sultanate was located, the area is overwhelmingly Muslim and conservative. One contact called it the "Muslim heartland" of Indonesia. (Note: Over 98 percent of Serang residents are Muslim. That compares to the roughly 85-88 percent in Indonesia overall. Pol/C had last visited Banten in February--see Ref B, speaking at a public university located in Serang.) ¶7. (C) At an informal Iftar (breaking of fast event held during Ramadhan),Pol/C met with representatives of several political parties. All the party representatives noted that their parties were steadily gearing up for the 2009 JAKARTA 00001786 002.2 OF 002 legislative and presidential elections. The overall feeling was that President Yudhoyono was relatively popular in Banten and would do well there, though perhaps not as well as during his 2004 election bid. Asked about the state of Indonesian democracy, participants underscored the importance of good governance, most particularly reforming the judiciary (which is seen as a weak in terms of capacity and is susceptible to bribery) and fighting corruption. If firm steps were taken in these areas, democracy would be further strengthened. ¶8. (C) Irfan Maksudi, chief of the Banten Province unit of the Islamic-oriented Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and recent IVP grantee, expressed support for the June 2008 GOI decision to impose restrictions on the Ahmadiyah Islamic sect. Maksudi said such restrictions were necessary because "Ahmadiyah must not be allowed to claim that they are Islamic when they are not." Pol/C underlined the importance of religious freedom. Representatives of Golkar and Partai Demokrat agreed that religious freedom was vital. While noting the importance of Islam in Banten (a point that members of the other parties fully agreed with),Maksudi went on to assert that he and his party fully supported religious freedom rights for minority faiths, such as Christians and Hindus. A MICROCOSM ¶9. (C) Overall, Banten is a microcosm of Indonesia's deep religiousity. Pol/C was struck by how seriously Bantanese adhered to fasting and prayer during the Ramadhan timeframe and how strongly they clung to the memory of the area's past as a sultanate. At the same time, the Christians at the University at Pelita Harapan practiced their faith freely and persistantly. (Note: Christians are quite active in the Jakarta area. As reported in Ref A, new mega-churches are being built, with one with capacity seating for 4,000 people opening on September 21.) At times, all the focus on religion and religious identification can lead to friction, such as that over the Ahmadiyah sect. That said, as with most Indonesians, Bantanese seemed strongly committed to pluralism and a "live and let live" philosophy. HUME