Irreligion in Indonesia
Open-knowledge reference entry
Atheism, or irreligion, in Indonesia, is uncommon among the country's inhabitants, as there is a great stigma attached to being an atheist in Indonesia and it is widely condemned by the Indonesian people.
Society
It is difficult to quantify the number of atheists or agnostics in Indonesia as they are not officially counted in the country's census. Indonesian atheists, such as those belonging to the Indonesian Atheists organization, predominantly communicate with each other solely via the Internet. According to Human Rights Watch, tolerance towards atheists among the general Indonesian public is growing, but they are still subject to violence by "largely militant Islamists." The founder of Pancasila and the first President of Indonesia Sukarno stated that belief in the Almighty as a characteristic of this nation needs to be recognized, even by those who do not believe in God. Accepting the First Precept means not only tolerating religious diversity in Indonesia, but also tolerating those who are irreligious, and asking for tolerance from those who do not have a religion to those who have a religion.
Discrimination
Atheists are subject to discrimination in Indonesia, seeing as irreligion violates the first principle of Pancasila (i.e. Ketuhanan yang Maha Esa, The One and Almighty God). Religious tolerance in Indonesia is limited to muted acceptance of other religions apart from Islam. Indonesian atheist activists are pursuing their religious freedom.
Law
Freedom of religion is enshrined in the Indonesian Constitution; however, legal protection is afforded only to six recognised faiths of the country—Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Confucianism.
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