Ministry Of Religion Threatens To Freeze Al Zaytun Islamic Boarding School Permits If Proven To Have Committed Serious Violations

Spokesperson for the Ministry of Religion Anna Hasbie. BETWEEN/HO-Kemenag/am.

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Religion (Kemenag) can freeze the operational permit of Al Zaytun Islamic boarding schools (Ponpes) if they are proven to have committed serious violations, such as spreading religious ideas that are considered heretical. "We can freeze statistical numbers and sign the list of Islamic boarding schools, including the madrasa permit," said Ministry of Religion spokesman Anna Hasbie in a statement received in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Friday, June 23. Currently, his party together with Islamic organizations are still conducting a comprehensive study of the dynamics that developed at the Al Zaytun Islamic Boarding School, with the aim of formulating attitudes on the various information and facts found and clarified related to the Islamic boarding school. On the other hand, Anna explained that the Ministry of Religion is a regulator in the implementation of religious education, including Islamic boarding schools. The Directorate General of Islamic Education is authorized to issue statistical numbers and a list of Islamic boarding schools, which are regulated in the Decree of the Director General of Islamic Education Number 1626 of 2023 concerning Technical Guidelines for Registration of Islamic Boarding Schools. Al Zaytun Islamic boarding schools are currently listed as having both statistical numbers and register signs. As the party that publishes, the Directorate General of Islamic Education also has the authority to freeze statistical numbers and sign the list of Islamic boarding schools. "As a regulator, the Ministry of Religion has the administrative power to limit the space for institutions suspected of violating severe law," said Anna. Previously, the Director General of Islamic Community Guidance at the Ministry of Religion Kamaruddin Amin stated that his party was still waiting for the results of the investigation regarding the activities at the Al Zaytun Islamic Boarding School which recently caused controversy. "I think there must be a complete and in-depth investigation. MUI has also visited there, everything is in process. Hopefully in the near future there will be complete information and soon there will be a decision related to it," he said.

According to him, the fate of the Al Zaytun Islamic Boarding School, will be determined after the ministry obtains information and a thorough study of the educational institution and discusses it with relevant stakeholders.