The Indonesian Ulama Council has urged the government to protect consumers from Israeli products
JAKARTA: The Indonesian Ulama Council called on the government on Tuesday to protect consumers from products linked to Israel, as imports surged between Jakarta and Tel Aviv even though they do not have diplomatic ties.
Indonesia has been one of the most outspoken countries since the beginning of the deadly Israeli offensive in Gaza, especially in the Israeli occupation of Palestine and halting international military support and arms sales to Tel Aviv.
Campaigns calling for the boycott of companies with direct or perceived ties to Israeli institutions have also become a regular occurrence in the country, where many people see a Palestinian state as mandated by their constitution.
In this regard, many were surprised when the latest figures from the country's Central Statistics Agency showed growing economic ties with Israel, with imports of more than $35 million to Indonesia between January and May.
Although not significant in Indonesia's overall trade volume, this amount is nearly four times higher than the $8.85 million recorded in the same period in 2023, and higher than last year's total of $21.9 million. Official statistics also showed that exports from Indonesia to Israel had reached more than $66 million by May.
The soaring trade volume made national headlines earlier this month, prompting the government to take action.
While the Foreign Ministry declined to comment on trade-related matters, and the Trade Ministry did not respond to questions on business relations with Israel, the Indonesian Ulema Council, or MUI, which is the country's top religious body, said: That business link should be “stopped.”
MUI's foreign relations chairman Dr. Sudarnoto Abdul Hakim told Arab News that the government should protect Indonesian consumers under existing laws.
“We have a consumer protection law, so the government must follow it to protect consumers from Israeli products,” he said.
Weeks after Israel's attack began, the MUI issued a fatwa, or religious edict, banning Indonesian Muslims from buying products that had anything to do with Israel.
“Any trade will definitely make a profit, and whatever the value of our imports from Israel, there is definitely a profit involved. This economic profit can now play an important role in financing Israel's main programs,” Hakim said. “Israel's current main agenda is to end Palestine Since, let's not support it.”
Israel's ground and air strikes in the past nine months have killed 39,000 Palestinian civilians in Gaza, according to official estimates, although a study published in the journal Lancet earlier this month estimated the actual death toll to be as high as 186,000.
“The existence of trade relations, especially their growth, gives Israel space to try other channels of relations with Indonesia, and that is dangerous. It will weaken Indonesia's spirit of defending Palestine.
Members of Indonesian civil society are also calling on the government to end trade ties with Israel.
“For me, this is a hypocritical double standard. On the one hand, the government is condemning the genocide of the Zionists and calling for a ceasefire, but on the other hand it is continuing business relations,” Muhammad Anshorullah of the Jakarta-based Aqsa Working Group told Arab News.
“I am urging the government … to take decisive action … to cut off trade relations with Israel.”
Cesep Jassim, who coordinated the thousands-strong march to Gaza in West Java last November, said business relations with Israel contradicted Indonesia's stance on Palestine.
“We call for the cessation of all business activities with Israel … The government must firmly reject all forms of ties with Israel, so that Indonesia does not appear to have a foot in both camps for its own benefit,” he said.
The Indonesian chapter of the Boycott, Boycott and Sanctions Movement, which called for economic and trade pressure in opposition to Israel, also opposed Indonesia-Israel trade relations.
“BDS rejects Indonesia's trade relations with Israel in all its forms, that is clear. We demand from the Ministry of Trade to put an end to this … In terms of the increasing amount, it is very regrettable, especially that it is happening in the middle of the ongoing genocide, to prevent such an increase and to correct it,” the head of BDS Indonesia, Muhammad Syauki Hafiz, told Arab News.
“Indonesia should not be satisfied with its existing position, it is not enough. There must be a policy escalation not only to defend Palestine, but also to deter and deter Israel. This is how it should be if Indonesia is sincere in its commitments.”
Media Wahyu Askar, director of public policy at the Center of Economic and Law Studies, said Indonesia is not dependent on Israeli products and can find alternatives from other countries.
“The government should seriously consider calls for boycotts of products associated with Israel and even Israeli products, because calls for boycotts are very effective in pressuring the private sector to stop doing business with Israel,” he told Arab News. Indonesia's economy will not be negatively affected.”
Between January and May 2024, Indonesia's imports were worth about $91 billion, meaning that imports from Israel – most of which were via third countries – were less than 0.05 percent.
But for Israel, Indonesia has “strategic value,” Askar said.
“In the next few years, Israel is expected to seek ways to influence Indonesia's political economy and normalize trade relations to gain global influence,” he said.
