THE Constitutional Court ruling shows up the paternalism in this nation when it is faced with the issue of diversity in religion. Last Monday, eight constitutional judges plus one judge, Maria Farida Indrati, who expressed a dissenting opinion rejected the request for a judicial review of Law No. 1/1965 on the Prevention of Religious Abuse and/or Blasphemy.

Clearly, this is bad news. The law should not only be rejected because it is a product of the