Indonesia To Enforce New Blasphemy Law In 2026, Raising Concerns Among Christians

by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Chief International Correspondent

JAKARTA (Worthy News) – Christians and rights groups have expressed concern that Indonesia’s updated blasphemy law will favor Islam, the main religion in the world’s largest Muslim nation, at the expense of minority faiths.

The new legislation, targeting nationals and foreigners, will be enforced from January 2026, Worthy News learned Thursday.

“Indonesia has had a blasphemy law since 1965. Multiple attempts have been made — including one by a former Indonesian president — to remove it from the nation’s legal code,” noted watchdog International Christian Concern (ICC) in its latest assessment. “But the blasphemy law has proven a resilient survivor,” the group added.

With more than 285 million people, Indonesia is the world’s largest majority-Muslim country. Though Muslims make up more than 85 percent of the population, the constitution officially recognizes six religions, including Protestantism and Catholicism.

EXPANDED PROVISIONS

The new code expands blasphemy statutes from one to six articles and introduces vague references to “living laws” — local or customary rules — that critics fear could be abused by officials in conservative regions. It also prohibits persuading someone to leave their religion, effectively criminalizing aspects of apostasy.

Human Rights Watch warned the measures would “severely restrict freedom of speech and association,” calling the changes “disastrous for rights.”

The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has repeatedly criticized Indonesia’s blasphemy laws and, in its 2025 annual report, recommended placing the country on Washington’s Special Watch List.

Open Doors, which tracks Christian persecution worldwide, ranked Indonesia 42nd on its 2025 World Watch List of 50 countries where Christians face the most pressure. It cited incidents of church closures, social discrimination, and increasing legal restrictions as reasons for concern.

In comments cited by ICC, a Christian identified only as Andreas said hostility toward churches in certain regions is linked to “the fear of Christianity,” which grew significantly during the latter half of the 20th century.

Jesuit priest Franz Magnis-Suseno, based in Jakarta, downplayed fears of Pakistan-style abuse of the law.

Pakistan has seen prisoners, including Christians, on death row for years, often on what rights groups view as trumped-up charges of blasphemy against Islam.

In published remarks, the priest noted that while intolerance persists in some areas, “we now have excellent relations with the two big Muslim civil society organizations [Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah], which help us to resolve conflicts.”

Yet evangelical Christians have also told Worthy News about their anxiety about growing Islamic extremism in the country.

Latest Worthy News