BUCSA Visiting Scholars’ Research Presentations

Tuesday, March 4, 2025, 5PM – 6:30PM Pardee School of Global Studies 121 Bay State Road, Boston MA Please register here: https://bostonu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3dV297NgdtUtErk Presentations: WHAT CONSTITUTES A THREAT? Understanding State Discrimination against Religious Minorities in Indonesia with Hurriyah, BUCSA Visiting Scholar and Universitas Indonesia with Hurriyah Policy Transformation of Islamic Education in Postcolonial Indonesia with Abdurachman Assegaf, BUCSA Visiting Scholar and UIN Sunan Ampel Surabaya, Indonesia with Abdurachman Assegaf This discussion delves into contemporary issues surrounding Islam in Indonesia, shedding light on the religious minorities issues and the evolution of religious education. Hurriyah examines the connection between the crosscutting factor of constitutive threats, public visibility, and political salience of minority groups with unequal state religious-based discrimination. Assegaf explores the transformation of Islamic education policy in the post-colonial context. Hurriyah is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Political Science and the Director of the Centre for Political Studies, Universitas Indonesia. She is also the chair of the Indonesian Scholar Network on Freedom of Religion or Beliefs (ISFORB). She researches religion and politics, Islam politics, gender, human rights, religious freedom, and religious minorities in Indonesia. She has 20 years of experience in academic and applied research that informs the government and non-government organisations on how to promote policy change in Indonesia. Since 2019, Hurriyah has been investigating the politics of religious freedom in Indonesia, focusing on minority groups. She has also been actively engaging with local, national, and international scholars to make the issue better known. She is currently doing research on Rohingya minority threat issues in Indonesia, in partnership with the Asia Research Centre Universitas Indonesia (ARC UI) and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC). Her recent works have been published in the Journal of Asian Politics and Policy and the Journal of Southeast Asian Human Rights. Abdurachman Assegaf is a Professor at Sunan Ampel State Islamic University of Surabaya in Indonesia where he heads the Islamic education program. and the comparative politics of human rights, with a special focus on both policies on and governance for religious freedom. Prof. Assegaf obtained both his masteral and doctoral degrees from UIN Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta in education and Islamic Studies, respectively. He also held various academic positions in Indonesia prior to his current position. As an established academic, Prof. Assegaf has a solid track record in research engagement and publications in various academic outlets.