ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the foundation of Indonesia as a pluralistic state and the implementation of human rights with reference to the challenge of protecting religious minorities within Islam. While being the most populous Muslim country in the world, Indonesia is however not an Islamic state. It is a Pancasila state which does not deny the role of religion in the public sphere but at the same time does not recognise the privilege of a particular religion over others. All religions and beliefs share equal rights even though reality shows that the majority religion usually dominates the public sphere. Thus, the dynamic nature of Islamic law generally influences the development of legal norms and sometimes collides with human rights norms, in particular the constitutional and international human rights protection for religious minorities within Islam. One problem is the different opinions among Islamic organisations regarding the rights of religious minorities within Islam. It is therefore very common for the government to try to compromise and navigate a significant role for both the secular and religious approaches, in order to resolve the issue of religious minorities within Islam.
