Lukman Hakim Saifuddin
Lukman Hakim Saifuddin is an Indonesian politician and Muslim scholar who was the Minister of Religious Affairs in the Second United Indonesia Cabinet of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Working Cabinet of President Joko Widodo.
Saifuddin is considered more moderate than his predecessor, Suryadharma Ali. As former party whip of the United Development Party in the People's Representative Council, Saifuddin pulled the PPP closer to the political center. Also unlike Ali, Saifuddin has indicated a willingness as Religious Affairs Minister to extend recognition to the Bahá'í Faith, a minority group in the country. Saifuddin also participated with Indonesian Buddhists in a joint prayer in Medan in November 2016. Conversely, he also urged Muslims in Indonesia to pray for the Rohingya minority in Myanmar in reaction to the 2016 Rohingya persecution in Myanmar, and stated that the Government of Indonesia was monitoring the situation.
Saifuddin also cautioned against follow-up protests to the November 2016 Jakarta protests against the Christian governor of Jakarta accused of blasphemy, stating that formal charges had been brought to a court of law and that there was no justification for further protests.
