Desperate and despondent after losing an Indonesian local election, Abdul Junaidi was the perfect prey for a charismatic cult leader promising great wealth and political success. Lured in with assurances that he would see his money multiply, the sugar cane farmer handed over 200 million rupiah (US$15,000) to the sect. But his cash disappeared, his political career stalled, and the leader of the group was arrested, accused of murdering one of Junaidi’s friends for threatening to unmask him.
“His promise was very tempting — that if I ran at elections, then I would win,” the 50-year-old sugar cane farmer told AFP. The case is the latest example of a shadowy sect playing on the widespread belief of the supernatural in Indonesia to allegedly swindle people.
Cult-like groups have long existed across the vast Indonesian archipelago, which is home to hundreds of different ethnic groups and where belief in local spirits and black magic are often fused with the dominant religion of Islam.
Photo: AFP
Belief in the supernatural is common across Asia. From China to Thailand, politicians often turn to soothsayers for advice.
But in recent times in Indonesia, the deep-rooted belief in the occult has taken a dark turn with several cases of sham cult leaders facing allegations ranging from murder to fraud and sexual assault.
The most high-profile has been the one that embroiled Junaidi, who was among thousands persuaded to join a cult led by Taat Pribadi, who gave himself the Indonesian royal title “Dimas Kanjeng.”
From former lawmakers to army generals and police officers, Pribadi managed to attract a huge and influential following to his cult in Probolinggo on Indonesia’s main island of Java, with members living in his palatial residence and nearby buildings.
He persuaded people to join the group with claims that he could bring them success — in Junaidi’s case by helping him win an election to head a small district on Java — and multiply money they gave him in an elaborate, supernatural ritual.
MAGIC MONEY-MAKING
The case attracted huge attention when videos went viral of Pribadi dressed in flowing white robes sitting on a chair and performing the ritual that ended with him producing fistfuls of money and throwing it onto the floor.
His cult, which had existed for about 15 years, eventually fell apart when Pribadi was arrested in September for allegedly ordering the murder of two of his followers who had attempted to unmask him as a fraud.
He is scheduled to stand trial over the murders and police are also investigating fraud allegations against him.
“I never got my original money back, and certainly did not see it multiply,” Junaidi said.
The killing of his friend finally pushed him to leave the cult after four years as a member, he added. Pribadi’s case followed that of another alleged sham cult leader, Gatot Brajamusti, who attracted followers — including high-profile female entertainers — by styling himself as an Islamic spiritual guru. But he was arrested in August for allegedly sexually harassing his female followers and drug possession. Police say that he has admitted to engaging in sex parties and using crystal methamphetamine.
At times the belief in the occult in Indonesia has reached the highest levels of government. In 2014, then president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono recounted how he and his wife were attacked by mysterious black clouds while at home in an episode of black magic he described as like a “horror movie.”
Indonesian law even bans black magic, with violators facing up to three months in jail or a fine of 450,000 rupiah, and the government is seeking to strengthen legislation against the practice.
Still, it will be hard to stop people turning to the occult in Indonesia. While most will not join cults, paying visits to spiritual gurus and faith healers is likely to remain popular.
Faith healer Ki Raksa Manggala, who operates from a dark basement in Jakarta and treats people for complaints ranging from headaches to problems in their love life, insists supernatural powers can be a force for good but concedes there are plenty of frauds in the business.
“As a patient you have to be smart, don’t be fooled by faith healers who want to trick you,” he said.
May 26 to June 1 When the Qing Dynasty first took control over many parts of Taiwan in 1684, it roughly continued the Kingdom of Tungning’s administrative borders (see below), setting up one prefecture and three counties. The actual area of control covered today’s Chiayi, Tainan and Kaohsiung. The administrative center was in Taiwan Prefecture, in today’s Tainan. But as Han settlement expanded and due to rebellions and other international incidents, the administrative units became more complex. By the time Taiwan became a province of the Qing in 1887, there were three prefectures, eleven counties, three subprefectures and one directly-administered prefecture, with
It’s an enormous dome of colorful glass, something between the Sistine Chapel and a Marc Chagall fresco. And yet, it’s just a subway station. Formosa Boulevard is the heart of Kaohsiung’s mass transit system. In metro terms, it’s modest: the only transfer station in a network with just two lines. But it’s a landmark nonetheless: a civic space that serves as much more than a point of transit. On a hot Sunday, the corridors and vast halls are filled with a market selling everything from second-hand clothes to toys and house decorations. It’s just one of the many events the station hosts,
Among Thailand’s Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) villages, a certain rivalry exists between Arunothai, the largest of these villages, and Mae Salong, which is currently the most prosperous. Historically, the rivalry stems from a split in KMT military factions in the early 1960s, which divided command and opium territories after Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) cut off open support in 1961 due to international pressure (see part two, “The KMT opium lords of the Golden Triangle,” on May 20). But today this rivalry manifests as a different kind of split, with Arunothai leading a pro-China faction and Mae Salong staunchly aligned to Taiwan.
Two moves show Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕) is gunning for Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) party chair and the 2028 presidential election. Technically, these are not yet “officially” official, but by the rules of Taiwan politics, she is now on the dance floor. Earlier this month Lu confirmed in an interview in Japan’s Nikkei that she was considering running for KMT chair. This is not new news, but according to reports from her camp she previously was still considering the case for and against running. By choosing a respected, international news outlet, she declared it to the world. While the outside world
RSS