Category: Eden Community / Lia Eden

Students protest over Lia’s arrest

JAKARTA: Dozens of students from the Jakarta State Islamic University (UIN) protested in front of the Jakarta Police Headquarters on Thursday condemning the arrest, for blasphemy, of Lia Aminuddin, the leader of The Eden sect. The students, organized under the banner of the Ciputat Student Forum (Formaci), carried banners and posters saying “reject violence in the name of religion”, and “stop discrimination towards the Eden community”. Coordinator Kusnandar said that the protest was organized to support the freedom of religion and religious beliefs as stipulated in Article 29 of the Constitution. “We believe that freedom of religion and religious beliefs

Jakarta police inconsistent on blasphemy infractions

The arrest of Lia Aminuddin, the leader of Salamullah or God’s Kingdom of Eden sect left several questions as to why she is being prosecuted, while other “heretics” have not. It also begs the question as to why it took eight years — the length of time she has been practicing — for her to be declared a heretic by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Noted criminologist with the University of Indonesia, Adrianus Meliala, acknowledged that the police had the right to charge Lia with religious blasphemy as stipulated in the Criminal Code, due

Lia treads a hazardous path from dried flower arrangement to Eden

Lia Aminuddin was born in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on Aug. 21, 1947, the second of the six children of Zainab and Abdul Ghaffar Gustaman, a trader and preacher from a Muhammadiyah background. When she was 19 years old, Lia married Aminuddin Day who later became a lecturer at the University of Indonesia’s School of Engineering. The couple had four children. Young Lia made a name for herself through her creative dried flower arrangements. In fact, she had her own show on TVRI, in which she demonstrated flower arrangement. Relaxing on the porch of her home on Jl. Mahoni 30 in

MUI Declared Lia Aminuddin’s Sect Deviate Long Ago

Jakarta (ANTARA News) – The Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) said here Friday it had issued a fatwa (ruling) against the religous sect led by Lia Aminuddin long ago and it was now up to the police to take further action against the group. “We have already done our duty since we declared Lia Aminuddin`s teachings deviate and misleading as early as December 1997,” MUI Chairman Amidan said. He said in MUI`s fatwa signed by then MUI Chairman KH Hasan Basri and MUI General Secretary Nazri Adlani, Lia Aminuddin`s sect was declared deviate based on a number of argumentations, among others,

Lia named suspect; followers freed

Jakarta Police charged Lia Eden on Friday with blasphemy and released all of the God’s Kingdom of Eden followers from detention late on Thursday. Chief of general crimes at city police Sr. Comr. Moh. Jaelani said all of Lia’s followers, who were detained on Wednesday, had been released as they were just witnesses in the case. “We are still questioning Lia’s main follower, identified as Abdul Rachman, as we need much more information from him. If we find that he plays a big role in the sect then we can name him a suspect also,” he told The Jakarta Post.

Sect leader, followers arrested

In a move that many saw as unnecessary, Jakarta Police declared on Thursday Lia Eden and 32 of her followers suspects for defamation of religion a day after members of the cult were forcibly evacuated from their headquarters on Jl. Mahoni in Senen, Central Jakarta. Another 15 people also evacuated from the house by the police to prevent a clash with local residents on Wednesday were not named suspects because they were just participants in the gathering at the headquarters. Jakarta Police Insp. Gen. Firman Gani added the police would charge members of the cult, known as Salamullah, under Article

Police Questioning Members of Lia Aminudin’s “Eden Community”

Jakarta (ANTARA News) – Police have taken in 48 people believed to be members of an esotoric spiritual movement called “Eden Community” for questioning after their regular hub in central Jakarta was besieged by neighbors. “We are now questioning 33 people at the Jakarta Police`s State Security Unit (Kamneg) and their status will only be known later today after we have finished the questioning,” Jakarta Police` spokesman Senior Commissioner I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said. He said 15 of the 48 people initially taken to the Komneg office had been set free as they proved not to be members of

Heretic cult enrages locals

JAKARTA: Dozens of followers of Lia Eden, previously known as Lia Aminuddin, were evacuated by police on Wednesday from their headquarters on Jl. Mahoni, Central Jakarta, to a safe place after thousands of people surrounded the place. Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. I Ketut Untung Yoga Ana said that the followers were evacuated to prevent them from being attacked by the people, who claimed that Lia and her people were followers of heretic teachings. “We must evacuate them to protect them from thousands of angry residents who have surrounded their base camp since morning. We are afraid that the crowd