Meutya Hafid Values Cases Of Islamic Insults Injury To Cooperation Between Indonesia And India

Chairman of Commission I DPR RI Meutya Hafid/ Photo: Antara

JAKARTA – The case of insulting Islam that occurred in India attracted the attention of the Chairperson of Commission I of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Meutya Hafid. The Golkar politician asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Kemenlu) to oversee and resolve the case so that the impact does not spread.

"I ask the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to continue to oversee and resolve cases of insulting Islam, both bilaterally and multilaterally," said Meutya, quoting Antara, Sunday, June 19.

Meutya supported the move by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to condemn the statements of two politicians from India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), namely Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal.

The criticism was conveyed at the Bilateral Meeting Forum of the Indonesian Foreign Ministers and the Indian Foreign Ministers during the ASEAN-India Foreign Ministers' Special Meeting (SAIFMM), which was held in New Delhi recently.

In his opinion, the statements of the two BJP politicians reflect the lack of sensitivity towards the Indonesia-India bilateral relations which have been going well so far.

According to Meutya, Indonesia-India bilateral relations and cooperation were built with a common view of respect for human rights, including mutual respect between religious adherents.

"I am of the view that respect for religion and belief is a basis that must be firmly held in bilateral relations and international relations. This basis must be a parameter for the future of Indonesia-India relations and cooperation," he said.

The former journalist assessed that the case of insulting religion allegedly carried out by two BJP politicians had injured international relations, especially India with Islamic countries or countries where the majority of the population is Muslim.