[ 233 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 CONTESTATION OF RELIGIOUS PUBLIC SPACE: CHRISTIANS VS MUSLIMS CASES IN PAPUA Zuly Qadir Muhammadiyah University of Yogyakarta Abstract The land of Papua has often been associated with the Papua Independence Move- ment (GPM), in addition to the Independent Papua Organization (OPM) which has been known since the 1990s. The battle between the civil society of Papua against the military seems to keep happening. Killing and shooting each other has always been a public discussion and media coverage. However, the thing that escapes people’s attention is a contestation that occured between the adherents of the religion of the indigenous Papuans who claim to adhere to Christianity, known as the ‘mountain people’, and the Muslims, known as the coastal and inland people who are regarded as non-natives of Papua. The contestation took place observably in public spaces like the streets, mountains, fields and various religious activities that involved mobs such as Kebaktian Kebangkitan Rohani (Spiritual Awakening Mass) among the Christians, as well as talbligh akbar (huge gathering) among the Muslims where they bring in speakers from outside Papua as an attraction. Such contestation has been going on since 1998 that sometimes triggered massive demonstrations and bans on religious activities as well as the establishment of a Muslim school. In the Papuan society, a lot of trou- ble is religious matters, coming both from the internal and external followers. To data were obtained through direct observations, in-depth interviews with a number of key informants, literature study and written documents related to the issue. The data were processed using interpretative approach as commonly used by Clifford and Geertz in the socio-anthropological tradition or social sciences in general. Key Words: Freedom of Religion, Public Contestation, Papua INTRODUCTION The annual  report on  freedom of religion  and  belief  issued by The Wahid Institute 2013 stated that from January through December 2013, the number of violations or religious belief reached 245 cases of intolerance. These cases were made up of 106 events (43 percent) involving the State actors and 139  cases  (57%) by  non-State actors.  Meanwhile the  total  number of acts of violence  and intolerance  reached  280 cases,  where  121  of them  (43%) were  done by the State actors and 159  cases  (57%) by  non- State actors. (The Wahid Institute, January 2014) [ 234 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 Based on the  fact delivered  by The  Wahid  Institute  above,  there is a fundamental  question  to be answered  by  every citizen  who claims to have religious belief: what causes violent behavior and actions that violates the Constitution concerning freedom of religion to occur? Isn’t freedom to adhere to  religious beliefs a human right  that cannot be  replaced  in  Indonesia, but why  does public  contestation related to  religion  always  take  place  and tend to lead to physical violence and murder? Based on the data, the State was often criticized as it has actually been regarded as a «failed state» in protecting its citizens to practice a religion and worship. Therefore, if a state is considered a failed state especially in terms of protecting the  freedom of  belief  and  worship, it is an uncontested  fact, especially  with regard to the minorities. Papua  became the spotlight  which this study will focus on. Papua Road Map written by  Muridan  Widjojo,  S.  et al, and  other  works of  Widjojo  (2009,  2001) and  The Papua Way – Dinamika Laten & Refleksi 10 Tahun Otsus Papua (Laten Dynamics and Reflection on 10 years of Papua Special Autonomy by  Anthony  Ayorbaba  (2011)  highlighted  how the  Papua conflict  should be approached  in order to get  the best solution for  Papua and the Government.  In the meantime,  as far  as  the author  knows  there are only  two  written works that really focused on religious conflicts that occurred in Papua, i.e. Christian Warta and a thesis by Cahyo Pamungkas (2008). Cahyo Pamungkas study was entitled: Papua Islam dan Otonomi Khusus: Kontestasi Identitas di Kalangan Orang Papua (Muslim Papua and Special Autonomy: Identy Contestation among the Papuans) (2008) discussed how the discourse of Islam and Christianity is used in the formation of the discourse Papua and Indonesia. Further, Cahyo Pamungkas (2008: 174- 175) by using Bourdieu’s analysis of the discourse of capital, habitus, and domain concluded: First, the  Papuan  Muslims  in the subordinate  position are trying to  get recognition of  their cultural  identity  which  is flexible  in the midst of  the ongoing Special  Autonomy.  Second,  the subordinate  position  of the  Papuan  Muslims  in  the realm of  the Islamic  diversity  on the land of Papua contested credentials with Muslim immigrants through construction of Papuan identity  politics as  represented in  the Islamic  discourse  of blessing on Papua and peace on the Papuan land discourse as well as other praxis on the advocacy  of human rights violations.  Third,  Muslims  the subordinate position  in  Papua  in  the realm of  politics and  diversity  in Papua  contested their identity with the Papuan Christians  through  discourses  that Islam  is part of the  customs of the  indigenous  Papuans  and  the praxis [ 235 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 of  mediation  between  Muslim settlers  with  Christian  Papuans  related to the  question of the  establishment of  places of worship and  Islamic schools.  Conclusion  of this study  is a strategy  by Muslim  Papuans  to get recognition of their cultural identity will be carried out by formulating their true flexible identity,  i.e.  combining  Islam  and  Papua,  contesting its cultural  identity  with Muslim  settlers  and Christian  Papuans  in the  arena of identity politics in the land of Papua, as well as internal consolidation through the creation of the Papuan Muslim Assembly  (MMP). The above mentioned research  is interesting and  intelligent,  but like  other researchers, they only  focused on the  contestation  discourse  of religious identity  in the frame  of the State relational discourse  hegemony  with  the existing religious conflict. This sort of subordinating approach to religion as an entity and the reality of politics in the shadow of the dominant discourse of  the State, which  in  the post-war period  of the new order, religion was capable of transforming back to be a dominant and hegemonic discourse on the lives of  communities and  even  countries.  This occurs because it is  a  transcendental  role  as  sacred  canopy  of rationality  of individual  and communal  political  action.  Thus,  through  this understanding, it is possible to  explain  how religion becomes  a dominant  discourse  between the  society and the State  that potentially  generate the emergence of  vertical and horizontal  conflicts  in  this  state of Pancasila.  This  constellation  has not been  explained by  Cahyo  Pamungkas  in depth. That is  why  there are Muslims in Papua who favor the status quo, while the Christian immigrants tend to melt in the discourse about Papua. Generally, research with ethnic groups and religion as the object and subject of the study has been widely conducted by many, either in the form of theological or practical  studies.  Each  successive  researcher  presents various  findings  that inform the specificity and diversity of the community in the performing religious rituals in everyday life. Unfortunately, religious conflicts sometimes cause not only a large number of  casualties, but also  serious damage to the material possessions which are looted  and burned.  In the  case of  a conflict  in Jayapura and Papua in general, the overall ethnic and religious conflicts seem to find synergy of the issues of immigrants versus native people. Santoso  (2002)  explained  the social  construction  on  the reasons  underlying the  political-religious  violence  in  Situbondo.  According to him,  the destruction of the Church was an attempt to channel public discontent against the  attitudes and decisions of  authorities.  The social construction  of the perpetrators’  argument regarding the  actions of  the Church  was that it deserved to be destroyed due to justification in the name of religion in order [ 236 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 to maintain religious identity (Santoso, 2002: ix-x). In line with  Santoso,  research conducted by  Ratnawati  (2003), showed  that the conflict of Ambon on January 19, 1999 was the tip of the iceberg of a long history of  religious conflict which was engineered by a  certain group  who the fought for land ownership and economic power  in the community of the Moluccas. However, eventually Ratnawati concluded that the tragedy showed that the  people  of Ambon  lacked  the skills needed to  manage  religious differences  and  other differences  in society,  including  the power  to refuse outsiders who intended to destroy the harmony in the community. She concluded that the Ambon tragedy was an example of the failure of the State to build a multicultural society (Ratnawati, 2003: 10-13). Meanwhile,  still in  the same case,  Asyumardi  Azra  (2003)  argued  that religion  played an important part  in the  communal  conflict  in Maluku, though the it noticeable later. He asserted that there was another factor that created  hostility and  conflict between the  two religious groups.  When  a dispute  occurred between the  religious groups  (Muslims and Christians), religion  was used  as a tool for a mob  to legitimize  acts of violence.  In addition, mass riots in Maluku came from competition in contested economic resources and the distribution of political power that was disproportionate in the local bureaucracy between the Muslim and the Christian community, at least in the last two decades. Another important factor was the failure of the police and military authorities in tackling the conflict thus it turned out that the they also became the perpetrators the religion-affiliated clash (Azra, 2003: 69-71) Likewise  research  by Bartels  (2011)  on  the Maluku  conflict, concluded that the most important thing in the case of a religious conflict in Maluku is due to a world religion that does not offer much that can support a resolution of the conflict. Maluku was like a bag of gun powder that could explode any time if  ignited.  This happened because there were  some  major obstacles, such  as the  Muslims  did not fully  accept  the Ambon Muslim  immigrants, and that  Muslims and Christians  in Ambon,  with the  new autonomous region made possible by  new  regulations,  could agree  to jointly  be  more assertive against the outsiders (Bartels, 2011: 141-142). This is a conclusion of some studies that address the problem of conflict in several parts of Indonesia, including  Papua  in  a diverse  perspective.  From there,  we get a  picture of  that  conflict of religion occurred  and it is the real thing, including  in Papua due to contested public spaces as indicated by this article [ 237 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 CONTESTATION OF PUBLIC SPACE IN THEORY AND CONCEPT The theory of  “construction  and reproduction  of culture” which was  put forward  by Abdullah (2006)  will be used  here.  Abdullah  revealed that the  community  can longer be understood  as  a  whole  entity  resulting from  a process  of differentiation  that occurs  in various forms,  such as  (1)  the process of  community  boundaries  obscuration caused by  incoming and  outgoing  migration  that takes place in  various communities;  (2)  weakening  cultural  boundaries  that  lead to  socialization process to experience a shift; (3) weakening compliance due to the loss of local leadership in a community (Abdullah, 2006). Cultural processes that cannot be avoided  will pose for potentially  conflict,  beginning with the  existence of tensions. The theory  is a continuation of  the theory of  phenomenology that was proposed  to view the paradigm of  social facts.  Approach to  the derivation  of  phenomenology  is a theory of  social construction  which  was conceived  by Peter  L.  Berger and  Thomas  Luckmann (1990).  Berger and Luckmann saw that the effort to understand the social construction is done by defining a reality and knowledge. The fact is implied in the social association expressed through communication via language, cooperation through forms of social organization and so on. The society is a fact of objective and subjective reality at the same time. As the objective reality, society is beyond the human self and should deal with it, whereas  as the subjective  reality,  individuals  within  the community  are an integral part. In other words, the individual is a shaper of society and the community  is  forming  the individual.  The fact  is  not singular  but plural, which is  why it is called objective and  subjective fact. Objective  reality  is a reality  that exists  outside of the  human self,  and  subjective  reality is a reality which is within the human (Berger and Luckmann, 1990: 66-225). By looking at  it that way,  this study  looks at how  individual  religiosity  and social construction of Jayapura is formed, so the currently it tends to crystalize toward primordialism, not only ethnicity or religion but also the symbiosis of ethnicity and religion  into one.  This phenomenon  is  also  marked  by a shift in values and social order in the study of nationalism (Nurkhoiron, 2005: 31). Primordialism  discussed  in  society,  that has  a  diversity of  customs  and cultures,  is an  inevitability.  Currently, the development  of community  values  often practiced  by the community  members in line  with the birth of religious doctrines with the new strengthened understanding that leads to  a notion  and  claims are constantly  being developed  and deployed.  Meanwhile, the process of  the development of  diversity  is [ 238 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 also  growing.  Therefore,  when  religious education  is  not applied  either through  family or  institutions  of formal education, it  will lead to  a problem that can result in conflict in society. In addition, public space such as the theory of approach put forward by Jurgen Habermas  can  show that  any  public  arena  always  has  a fight  (contestation) between  groups of people.  Their  interplay  among  the community  is to gain influence and win the fight. Therefore, there is almost no public arena that is not related to contestation, including contestation which emerges from the religious dimension. JAYAPURA AS A CONTESTATION OF PUBLIC SPACE Jayapura  in terms of  number of  religions  shows  a trend that Christianity  (Protestantism) is becoming the  religion of  the most widely  embraced by  the population with  the number of  followers is approximately 118,981.  Islam  is  the second  religion  embraced  by more or less 95,506  followers,  and Christianity (Catholicism) with 45,109 followers  , Buddhism 1,845 followers, and Hinduism 1,569 followers (BPSJayapura, 2012: 74). This data clearly shows that in fact the Christian religion is observed by the majority of the people of Papua. The religious proportion of the population in Jayapura that can be  used  as a representation  of Papua,  where  the number of Christians and Muslims show an increasing number of followers, can be used as an indication of the geographical and political consciousness of people of Papua, and  the Christians  in general feel threatened  by  Immigrants  and Islam.  Muridan  Widjojo,  S  (2009: 17)  a researcher  from  LIPI, explained that  in 2011,  the composition of  the  newcomers  was more  than  the native Papuans, so it gave rise to concern particularly for the indigenous people of Papua, who are predominantly Christian, especially with regard to the issue of Islamization. Jayapura in the 2000 census, according to the statistical data, gave a real picture of a very rapid population growth which was intertwined with religions. If the focus of  the attention devoted to  the composition of  the  population  based on  religion  by comparing the number of Christians (Protestants)  and Muslims.  In the city of  Jayapura, the  adherents  of Islam were the second biggest with a number of 70,072 followers or 45,05% of the total population which was 155,548. The majority were Christians (Protestants) with a total number of 75,288 followers or 48,40%. The third place was the Catholics with 8,968 or 5,77%. Muslims were predominantly newcomers reaching 121,837 followers and  the indigenous Muslim population  was  4,958.  While  native Papuan Christians (Protestants and Catholics) were 149, 272 followers and Christian [ 239 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 immigrants  were  62,996  followers (CRCS, 2010:  14-15).  The composition of  the  population  based on  religion  could not be separated from  the presence of  the massive  migration of  settlers  from outside  Papua, and thus the  presumption  of  Islamization  and  Christianization  in Papua  in some contexts is very complex. In the social life of religious dynamics in Jayapura, especially after the Reform movement that swept Indonesia experienced ups and downs. This happens due to a number of fundamental changes in the social life of Jayapura. When the Reform era  came, the courage  of  both the natives  and  immigrants  seemed to be  seen  in a variety of  life practice  like  the  improvement of  migrants’ economic condition  and  the  rise of  the demands of  the indigenous population  that began to  become marginalized population.  The tension  was  inevitable  where previous  suspicions  began to  resurface  in the minds of  the natives  about  the immigrant population  being in control of local resources.  Suspicion of  the presence of  immigrant  population expansion and  control  strengthened  among  them,  even to the  claim of the rise of Islamisation through public sector such as the control of economic and educational resources. In  fact, many  people  from Jayapura  still  embraced  local  belief  as  the conviction of their religion. They believe that the local religion is something that has been  firmly established  before the days of  independence  even  from the days of  Dutch colonialism  in the past.  However due to  the  mission carried out by  the Dutch colonialism, there have been a lot changes to the religions we embrace today.  Even  since the  New Order  regime  came to power, Indonesian society could only embrace the official State religions such as  Protestantism,  Catholicism,  Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism,  and not other religions. CRUCIFIX AND HOME CHURCH The cross  is now a  prominent  landmark  in the city of  Jayapura.  In Several corners  of the city,  this symbol  can be found  with  many different sizes  and variations. Such symbols can be seen clearly on top of the Hill, at the corner of the street, atop a small island in the Bay of Jayapura, even on an entrance gate of a village street. This phenomenon, for researchers is relatively new. In contrast to  the phenomenon of  the  Pondok Natal (Christmas Lodge)  that has long been  there  and decorated  Christmas celebrations  every year  in Jayapura. The phenomenon, according to several informants, appeared after the  2000s. It is  interesting to  be traced  even further, especially  with regard to the emergence of this phenomenon and its connection to the relationship [ 240 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 between Christianity and other religions in Jayapura. In addition to the cross symbol, some places now Jayapura are also decorated in typical  Christian  names,  and this  visual  phenomenon, now  extended  by making sites such as the island of Metu Debi, which was declared a site of the evangelists on the land of the Tabi, on Sunday, March 10, 2013 with the slogan “It is God who chose and set Metu Debi as the start of a new civilization for the people of Tabi.» Historical origin of the awareness about religion in Papua seems to affect or at least gives the new awareness to Muslims in Papua to know the history of their existence in Papua. Then the Papua Islamic history books came into existence such as one by Wanggai  (2009) and Athwa (2004) or the Jayapura  mosque  committee  effort  as already  described in  the earlier chapter  .  The writing of  this history  can be viewed  as an attempt  of reconstruction  and reproduction of  the myth of  the validity of  a group  over something,  in this case the people of Papua and their land. The history constructed and reproduced by the Church, where the Church is depicted along with the Papuans who are impoverished, persecuted, chained and  even eliminated of their  rights and  dignity  as  the original owners  of Papua by the Government and along with the anti-Islamization sentiment (not to mean anti Islam), have been able to make the identity of the real Papua a single  start  to unfold.  However,  the Muslims  in  their efforts to reconstruct their own history in Papua could not be practically regarded as useless or even created a  desperate  situation in  Papua.  The establishment of  the  Mus- lim  Council of Papua (MMP) is one of the significant impacts of the new his torical consciousness response toward Islam and Papua. Even Muslim immi- grants of Yemeni descent, Thahaal Muhammad  al-Hamid, was able to fight side by side in harmony for the sake of peace and independence of Papua. The oth- er extreme movement is the growing trend of Islamic liberation theology which is carried out by the new generation of Muslims of Papua, IsmailAsso, going hand in hand with the liberation theology which is carried out by the church- es of Papua since 1995. According to the  observations of the  researcher,  after the year 2000, the construction of  the monuments  (crucifix) in Jayapura (even across  cities  in Papua) was  triggered by the  consciousness  regarding  the relevance of Christianity as the Papuan identity. The advent of the Christian identity of Papua like this is in fact the result in the wake of the euphoria to the emergence of a discourse of Raperda Manokwari as the City of Gospel, as a counterpart of the discourse construction of Mosque and Islamic Center around Manokwari in September 2005 proposed by one of the candidates for Deputy Governor to gain the sympathy of Muslim voters in West Papua. [ 241 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 According to the  ICG  report  on 19th October, the leaders  of the Church, through the Agency of Cooperation between the Churches District of  Manokwari  (BKAG),  issued a joint statement  of a “deep concern” over  the establishment  of  governments that  “discriminatory  and unjust”  to the development  of Christianity in  Indonesia. They cited  991  attacks on  churches  across  Indonesia  since  Indonesia’s independence  in 1949  until  today;  the pattern  of intimidation  against  Christians and attacks on  pastors and  churches;  material losses  experienced by  churches and Christian schools; the trauma suffered by Christians in the area of conflict such as  in Ambon and  Poso;  and discrimination  law  through the  “Joint Decree of Two  Ministers.”  The arrival of  the Gospel  on 5 February  1855 in  Mansinam  Island, said  the  joint statement,  was  «a milestone  to the start of  a new  civilization  on the land of  Papua,  opened a”  dark  curtain” and instill confidence through sacrifice and martyrdom of the missionaries. THE CHURCH AND HOME-BASED RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION In brief,  from  the ICG  report, it is  found  that what happened  in Jayapura  with  a proliferation of  home  churches,  was an influence  from  the influx of  Pentecostal  charismatic  groups churches,  also known as  the neo- Pentecost. The Churches and  the group  are known for  controversy,  not only  because  they claim  to attempt to convert the Muslims, so  as to cause conflict  with  the Muslim community, but also  because sometimes  they receive the material and moral support from the Government or military, so it keeps them away  from  local church  groups.  Not only  Muslims,  devotees  of other church  denominations are also  threatened  and this  would jeopardize  the their financial  donations.  Active  in several cities  in Papua, in terms of  doctrine  and practice of  religion, the  charismatic and  Pentecostal movements are almost identical, and they practice “a quality way of worship is  a dynamic and  expressive way which is  physically  demonstrative»  and therefore  their  devotion  in small  houses and  village  halls  often causes noise to the neighbors nearby. The small home church is characteristic of the activity of those who are likely to meet in cells or prayer groups who move from one place to another. These cells are used for recruiting new members, just like radical Muslim groups that rely on a  small  study  group to identify  members that  might be  recruited.  When it reaches a sufficient number of members, they could set up a particular church or a study group. This is the factor that makes the church quickly mushroom in the villages of  Jayapura.  Most  Charismatic Churches  consider themselves to be between denominations. So, they want more formal organization. [ 242 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 The Charismatic  Church  emphasizes on  the Holy Spirit and  divine healing.  They believe  the Holy Spirit enters  the people  after  they are baptized  and give  the gift of  speaking in  tongues, where a person  is suddenly pulled out foreign words or language which has never been learned before. This is one of their methods because of its apolitical and taught “the theology of  success”,  by linking  belief, wealth,  and success. Believers  are the ones who are rich; poverty, sickness or sufferings are a sign of lack of faith. As depicted by a priest, “If sinners have a Toyota, then the pious will certainly get a BMW”. This doctrine is become popular in Papua as it is so intertwined with the religion  of Melanesian  people  of Papuan  native,  i.e.  cargo  cult:  “cult of object”, which connects  the arrival of  foreigners  in hopes  to  gain access to the merchandise and spiritual salvation. Its apolitical nature, is similar to the salafi, that also  tend to be  aggressive and provocative  in the  expression of proselytization. The rumor  about and the promise of  aid to the  Church  by the  local government  after the victory of  the Governor  and the Mayor of  Jayapura  in Papua, as reported by the informants (and members of the Papua task force and  DPRP, interviewed on 3rd June  2013)  appeared to be  a hot  issue  among the  churches particularly regarding the internal  distribution.  The case  became complicated  concerning  the distribution of  aid  because of  the mushrooming neo-Pentecostal and Charismatic churches. To date, the Church (Protestant) is dependent on donations from its followers. TOA (LOUD SPEAKERS), ADZAN, AND TALBLIGH AKBAR In reality, the  TOA  (loud speakers)  also have long been  used by  several churches in Jayapura, for example  in areas  such as  Hamadi  as reported by the Papuan task force and youth members of the DPRP interviewed on 3rd June 2013 and also shared by Amirullah, a research colleague from the State College of Islamic Studies (STAIN)  who spent  quite a while  in the region. However,  from  the experience  of an  informant  who had  lived in  Jayapura for decades, it was revealed that  before the year  2000  no  churches used  a loudspeaker (TOA) with the sound that could be heard from outside. These issues are now brought to discussion by KH Masdar Farid Masudi (In donesia Mosque Council) in the event of a Talbligh Akbar (huge gathering of people listening to a sermon)  themed  Khawarij dan Dajjal Salafi, Wahabi- Amalan Sunnah yang dianggap Bid’ah (Sunnah which is considered heresy) at Al  Ikhlas  Mosque Mekarsari,  Eastern Bekasi,  onSunday  May 26,  2013.  He said, “If a person is interested in listening to a sermon or recital of the verses of the Holy Qur’an, then they should go into the mosque. In addition to disturb- [ 243 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 ing peaceful of surrounding, the sermon, according to Masdar, contains infor- mation that will open the secret and the rules of Islam. It’s like we are stripped in public. So people know all the good and bad about us”. In Jayapura, the TOA at mosques can also be regarded as intolerant especially when the adzan is called with loud sound, and before the adzan (call of prayer) is called, long tahrim is read out. The problem with the noise from the view of the Church is the reality that exists outside of Papua, especially in Java, where TOA loud speakers from the mosque have dominated the sound and without pauses  except  from sunrise to noon. There is a  habit  now  before the  adzan is called five  times a day, not only  loud  tahrim can be heard  but recorded recital of the Qur’an, praise to god, can also be heard out loud. The voice of children  learning  the Qur’an  and  sermons  (Friday  or  other day),  always comes out of mosque when the time has come to do so. Obviously this is very disturbing not only to people of other faiths, but also to the Muslims themselves. In addition, Muslims  also  do the same thing  through  the activities of  TalblighAkbar  with a variety of  themes.  Such activities are held  almost every  month, organized  by  religious organizations  in Jayapura.  The Talbligh Akbar is carried out with almost the same pattern with the Christian mass. The organizers usually invited speakers from outside Papua particularly a preacher from Java.  Muslims  flock  to the event venue  on  the  transport that is  also  prepared by  the organizers. The deployment of  large- scale  mass  is  possible  due to the  wide range of facilities prepared by the organizing committee. The activities are often held in public places such as the Trikora square, Mandala square, PTC Entrop, and other public places. Ustadz  Fadlan  is one of  the most  popular  among the  Muslims  that frequently  comes to Papua  to give a Talbligh  Akbar.  Ustadz  Fadlan  is a native of  Papua (Fak  Fak), where  its Muslim population  is  nearly the same as Christians. CHRISTIAN SPIRITUAL MASS VS TALBLIGH AKBAR ISLAM After the Reform, religious activities that involve a lot of people kept increasing and  in the midst of the highs and lows of  Christian-Islamic  relations  in Jayapura. The Christian Spiritual activities, for example, are always held each month. This has become a regular agenda in addition to worship services and is also interspersed with free medical treatment. Christians flock from all corners of the city. Transportation is prepared; banners can be seen almost in every part of the city;  pamphlets and information  are disseminated through the  mass media. This activity is highly anticipated by people because it is held openly in a public place  such as  the  Mandala square,  PTC  Entrop,  Trikora  square, [ 244 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 and other public places by inviting speakers from Java, even from overseas. The Christians in  Papua  until now  have yet to have a Bishop  of native Papuan origin. This also indicates a ‹pressure› or the watchful eye of the Government. This led to a prolonged situation of sentiment full of bias in the mind of the Church. The church have to adapt as they are working under the government of Indonesia that sympathize with the Muslims more than they do with the Christians (Mujiburrahman, 2006). As much as 80% of the religious  aid from the Government went to the Muslims, even though the Muslims are the monority. The Government Transmigration Program has made it possible for the Muslim high ranking senior official to enter the local administration. In addition the iron fist approach on the side of the military and the police toward the opposition and even innocent Papuans has also worsened the situation. Anyone trying to show their Papuan identity is oppressed and sometimes punished. Jayapura in the wake of various religious phenomena that occurred lately showed a correlation between  the Muslim  reaction  in Jayapura  with the events  that occurred outside of the city, particularly  the enactment of  Perda  Evangelical  Perda (Regional law) in Manokwari.  Muslims  in Jayapura did not address the matter quietly. Some of the Muslim leaders held a meeting sponsored by  Indonesia  Muslim  Intellectuals  (ICMI)  Papua to prepare for possible strategy should the law be actually passed. This shows that the role of  religion  is very significant  because it is always  positioned as  an encouragement  among  believers.  Description in this chapter  is focused on how religion emerges as a shared entity based on the Papuan identity. It is based on the condition that the praxis of religious harmony in Jayapura is in contrast to the discourse of peace stated by elite theologians. CONCLUSION Based on the study  that has been  conducted,  it can be concluded that the reality between religion and public (political) space  in the context of Jayapura is indispensable to each other. What’s happening in religious circles also occurs in politics. In terms of social life, it indicates that both religion and politics, in the social life of  the community come together to meet.  Religion  becomes  very sacred, but at the same time very easy to ‘sell’. The permissive culture of the society provides a space for people to take a variety of forms of culture that come from the outside. People welcome new ideas as a result of the emergence of a new culture, copying everything that fits their way of life and later acknowledging  as their own.  This excessive  claims  turn out to be an arena to show influence and power that gives rise to conflict among [ 245 ] AL ALBAB - Borneo Journal of Religious Studies (BJRS) Volume 3 Number 2 December 2014 the people in Jayapura. This situation is worsened by migrants coming from Papua bringing their own culture which is different from the local culture. Public  space  for religious  struggle  in jayapura  occurs in  vari- ous  forms  of  symbolic nature. 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