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Pancasila

Last updated on March 31, 2022

The shield’s five emblems in the Indonesia’s coat of arms Garuda Pancasila represent Pancasila. Italso spelled Pantjasila, English Five Principles, the  Indonesian  state  philosophy, was formulated by the Indonesian nationalist leader Sukarno. The term consists of two Sanskrit words, “panca” meaning five, and “sila” meaning principle.

It comprises five inseparable and interrelated principles. They are:

1. Belief in the One and Only God

The first principle of Indonesia’s ideology states that Pancasila: “belief in the one and only God“. That means everyone has to have religion. A number of different religions are practiced in the country, and their collective influence on the country’s political, economical and cultural life is significant. Based on the 2010 census, approximately 85.1% were Muslims, 12.7% Christians (9.2% Protestant and 3.5% Catholic), 1.8% Hindu, 0.4% Buddhist and other or unspecified .

The Indonesian Constitution guarantees the right to the freedom of religion. However, the government only recognizes six official religions, namely Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Buddhism and Confucianism.

2. Just and Civilized Humanity

This principle requires that everyone has to treat each other with due regard to their dignity as God’s creatures. It emphasizes that the Indonesian people do not tolerate physical or spiritual oppression of human beings by their own people or by any other nation.

3. The Unity of Indonesia

This principle embodies the concept of nationalism, of love for one’s nation and motherland. It envisages the need to always foster national unity and integrity. Pancasila nationalism demands that Indonesians avoid feelings of superiority on ethnical grounds, for reasons of ancestry and color of the skin. In 1928 Indonesian youth pledged to have one country, one nation and one language. And the Indonesian coat of arms enshrines the symbol of “Bhinneka Tunggal lka” which means “unity in diversity”.

4. Democracy Guided by the Inner Wisdom in the Unanimity Arising Out of Deliberations Amongst Representatives

Pancasila democracy calls for decision-making through deliberations, or musyawarah, to reach a consensus, or mufakat. It is democracy that lives up to the principles of Pancasila. This implies, that democratic right must always be exercised with a deep sense of responsibility to God Almighty according to one’s own conviction and religious belief, with respect for humanitarian values of man’s dignity and integrity, and with a view to preserving and strengthening national unity and the pursuit of social justice.

5. Social Justice for the Whole of the People of Indonesia

This principle calls for the equitable spread of welfare to the entire population. But not in a static but in a dynamic and progressive way. This means that all the country’s natural resources and the national potentials should be utilized for the greatest possible good and happiness of the people.

Social justice implies protection of the weak. Protection should not deny them work. They should work according to their abilities and fields of activity. Protection should prevent wilful treatment by the strong and ensure the rule of justice.

These are the sacred values of Pancasila which, as a cultural principle, should always be respected by every Indonesian. It is now the ideology of the state and the life philosophy of the Indonesian people.

Source: http://www.wirantaprawira.de and http://www.panix.com

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