The debate over freedom and maintaining harmony in a diverse society has been ongoing for decades. It remains a contentious issue in human rights literature, particularly concerning freedom of expression, assembly, thought, belief, and religion.
The aspiration for harmony, embedded in the ideas of peace, social cohesion, and public order, is often understood as a freedom that requires certain restrictions, making it controversial.
Concerned about this issue, Dr. Zainal Abidin Bagir delivered a keynote address at the 2024 AAS-in Asia conference on Wednesday, Jul. 10, 2024, at Grha Sabha Pramana, titled “Revisiting Freedom versus Harmony Debate: From Asian Values to Decolonization.”
To spark discussion, Dr. Bagir began his presentation by questioning the concept of harmony. He suggested that creating harmony or social cohesion is often achieved by restricting individual and collective freedoms.
“Restrictions on freedom are indeed permitted if done to protect public order. Can these restrictions be justified properly, without excess, and achieve the intended goals, such as harmony? Even in international human rights discourse, these restrictions are still intensely debated,” Dr. Bagir remarked.
Dr. Bagir’s presentation examined how this debate occurs in Asia, particularly in Southeast Asia and Indonesia.
He argued that modern human rights terminology often dramatically refers to European concepts of human rights rather than the universal claims that have been traditionally presented.
Therefore, there is a need for the decolonization of human rights understanding that aligns with local perceptions for more effective enforcement. For example, in Indonesia, freedom must not contradict Pancasila, state sovereignty, and religious values.
“Indonesia is not a religious state; various streams are seen as part of a plural society, so the state does not interfere with the beliefs of each stream. However, the state will intervene when group interactions cause instability,” Dr. Bagir explained.
He added that the state must foster harmony, including issuing warnings, prohibitions, and detentions by applicable laws.
Rachel Rinaldo, Associate Professor from the University of Colorado Boulder, praised Dr. Bagir’s presentation during the keynote session last night.
“Tonight’s keynote speaker, Zainal Abidin Bagir, was exceptional. Thank you to UGM and AAS for organizing this event. Many panels with unusual themes and engaged participants have made this the best conference so far,” Rinaldo said.
Dr. Zainal Abidin Bagir currently serves as the Director of the Indonesian Consortium for Religious Studies (ICRS), which comprises UGM, UIN Sunan Kalijaga, and Duta Wacana Christian University.
With an interest in issues of democracy and religious diversity, he has been involved in editing several books with his international colleagues, such as “Indonesian Pluralities: Islam, Citizenship and Democracy,” published by the University of Notre Dame Press in 2021, and “Varieties of Religion and Ecology: Dispatches from Indonesia,” published by LIT Verlag in 2021.
Dr. Bagir also served as editor for the book “Politik Moderasi dan Kebebasan Beragama: Suatu Tinjauan Kritis” in 2022 and “Mengelola Konflik, Memajukan Kebebasan Beragama” in 2024.
Additionally, from 2019 to 2023, he produced a series of documentaries in collaboration with the Center for Religious and Cross-cultural Studies (CRCS) UGM, Boston University, and Watchdoc Documentary.
Author: Triya Andriyani
Photographer: Firsto
Post-editor: Lintang