A priest has accused the government of lacking the will to identify and tackle underlying problems which have led to growing cases of intolerance and violence in the country over the past few years.

“It has failed to configure a set of norms to resolve problems,” Father Antonius Benny Susetyo, executive secretary of the Indonesian Bishops’ Conference’s Commission for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, said yesterday

He was speaking at a meeting between the chairman of the Regional Representatives Council, Irman Gusman, and human rights activists at the house of representatives in Jakarta.

“Our vision of a national way of life has not been reached yet. The government has no political will to map out and take on the main causes of the problems creating violence in Indonesia,” he continued.

Attempts to resolve violence at a political level does not seem to bearing any fruits at all, he said.

Seto Mulyadi from the National Commission for Child Protection added that violence is also increasing among children, citing a growing number of bullying cases recorded among elementary school students.

“About 60-70 percent [of children] experience bullying in some form or another. In society in general we are hearing more and more about other acts of violence, such as kidnappings and rapes,” he said.

Gusman acknowledged that Indonesia, as one of the largest democracies in the world, is yet to achieve equality under the law.

“Democracy without discipline and legal enforcement will plunge into anarchy,” he warned.