Mass sex abuse allegations force closure of boarding school in Indonesia

The case against Ashari resurfaced last month when, after two years, police finally named him as a suspect.

Authorities are still investigating the number of victims, Jaka said. But the allegations also point to a systemic trend of abuse in Indonesia's Islamic boarding schools.

Ashari is said to have instilled misleading doctrines in his female students, several of whom said he claimed to be a saint with powers beyond human comprehension and, in other cases, the descendant of a prophet who should be honoured.

Imam Nahe'i, a member of the PBNU Anti-Sexual Violence Unit (SAKA) who is also a former commissioner of the National Commission on Violence Against Women, tells the BBC that cases of sexual violence in Islamic boarding schools usually follow a similar pattern.

Caretakers in these schools often teach things that "smell of shamanism or mysticism", as opposed to "anything rational", he says.

"Then there are also those who claim to be guardians," he adds. "If you don't obey them, you'll go to hell."

More explicitly, Imam Nahe'i says Islamic boarding schools often normalise, tolerate, and even allow actions such as touching, hugging and kissing students – which, he says, could lead to a tolerance of sexual violence.

He cites a case at a school in Sumenep, which "happened quite a long time ago, since 2017, until it was finally uncovered recently".

"This means that all this time there has been some tolerance from those around them."

Imam Nahe'i, who teaches at a large Islamic boarding school, says that when he asked he found his fellow teachers "didn't understand what sexual violence was".

"They said sexual violence is defined as penetration," he explains. "If it hasn't reached that point, it's not considered sexual violence – it's just a kind of sin."

A broader issue relates to a lack of government supervision.

While Indonesia's Ministry of Religious Affairs issued legislation in 2022 concerning the handling of sexual violence in educational contexts, Islamic boarding schools – which are typically founded by individuals rather than government institutions – are harder to regulate and often slip through the cracks.

This makes it difficult to report and protect against sexual violence in Islamic boarding schools. As Imam Nahe'i puts it, the legislation "cannot control" them.

"In order for Islamic boarding schools to have clear regulations and a task force, I think the Ministry of Religion really needs to push for this," he says.

"In addition, supervision from the Ministry of Religion and the community regarding these newly emerging Islamic boarding schools must be stricter."

The Ndholo Kusumo boarding school reportedly had a permit since 2021, and was home to at least 252 students.

In the wake of these latest allegations, the school has been closed down and students have been sent home.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs has revoked the school's license permanently, and said that students' educations would continue through online learning options or transfers to other institutions – especially for orphaned students.

The Director of Islamic Boarding Schools at the Ministry of Religion, Basnang Said, explained that the closure of the boarding school was to ensure that authorities could prioritise the investigation while maintaining order and protecting children.

New student admissions will be suspended until all issues are resolved and there is certainty that the childcare system, child protection, and institutional governance meet standards.

If Ndholo Kusumo is found to not meet those standards, it will be permanently deactivated.

The Ministry of Religion has further recommended that educators or caretakers at Islamic boarding schools who are suspected of sexually abusing students should be dismissed and kicked out of their residences on the Islamic boarding school grounds.

Islamic boarding schools across Indonesia are being asked to appoint new teaching staff with the capacity, moral integrity, and readiness to fully care for students 24 hours a day.