Deviant Sects in the Context of the Right to Practice Religion: A Critical Study of Its Position in the Constitutions of Indonesia and Malaysia

Abstract

Aims: This research aims to find a solution to the settlement of deviant sect practices in the context of the right to practice religion in the Constitutions of Indonesia and Malaysia. Method: This type of research is normative legal research and uses statutory, comparative, and conceptual approaches. Theoretical Framework: The study is grounded in normative legal research, employing statu-tory, comparative, and conceptual approaches to analyze the constitutional frameworks of both countries in relation to the right to practice religion. Research Implications: Freedom of religion is an issue that often becomes a debate when cases of deviant sects arise both in Indonesia and in Malaysia. The debate is caused by the ambiguity of the provisions on freedom of religion in a country's constitution so that it can provide various interpretations of freedom of religion. The ambiguity can be seen when comparing the Indone-sian Constitution and the Malaysian Constitution. The Indonesian Constitution does not explic-itly state the right to practice religion, while the Malaysian Constitution clearly states the right to practice religion. These differences in provisions have had a significant impact on the exer-cise of the right to practice religion in the two countries. Result and Conclusion: The results of the research show that the absence of provisions on freedom of religion in the Indonesian constitution is the difficulty in resolving the problem of deviant sects as sects that destroy the faith of Muslims. The clarity of the provisions on free-dom of religion in the constitution is the ease of resolving the problem of heretical sects as prac-tices that contradict Islamic teachings.