Liberals, moderates and jihadists: protesting Danish cartoons in Indonesia

Abstract

Muslim liberals, moderates, and radical “jihadists,” together with the Indonesian government, condemned Danish caricatures of Prophet Muhammad as insulting and hateful. However, the form of protest of these diverse segments of Indonesian Muslims was shaped by their ideological frameworks and political agendas. The “mainstream” of Indonesia’s increasingly radical “moderate” Muslim community, as represented by Nahdlatul Ulama, Muhammadiyah, and the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS), squarely condemned the images within their particular perspectives, while distancing themselves from the “anarchist” radical demonstrators. The Liberal Islam Network (JIL), dedicated to fighting against “fundamentalists,” pointed out the role of detrimental fundamentalisms around the world. Several small radical groups, MMI, FPI and HTI actively staged street demonstrations fitting this case into their ideological framework of jihad, defending Islam, and/or striving for an Islamic state. These varied responses are better understood as integral to ongoing processes of radicalization, liberalization, and cultural and politico-jural Islamization.