TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Around 10 tombstones of Christian burial sites are suspected to have been damaged by unknown individuals at the Ngentak Cemetery, RT 10 Baturetno Banguntapan, Bantul, Yogyakarta. According to Tempo's archives, cases of grave desecration have occurred in several places in the past. Yogyakarta has also had viral cases similar to this.
Here are a series of cases of grave desecration that have occurred in Indonesia.
1. 10 Christian tombstones desecrated in Bantul
According to Tempo's observation at the location on Sunday, May 18, 2025, the damaged tombstones at the Ngentak Cemetery in Bantul, consisted of four to five tombstones. The stone tombstones were mostly shattered and had holes in the middle, indicating that they had been hit or pried open with a tool.
It is known that the desecrated tombstones had crosses and were the burial sites of Christians. One of the tombstones was in a severe condition, with the entire marble surface being destroyed and revealing earth mounds inside.
The Bantul Police Resort in Yogyakarta intervened to investigate the incident. Bantul Police Resort Public Relations Division Head, Adjunct Commissioner of Police I Nengah Jeffry Prana Widnyana, stated that the desecration of the tombstones is suspected to have occurred between Saturday night and early Sunday, on May 17-18, 2025.
"The desecration of the tombstones is estimated to have occurred last night (Saturday) or early Sunday, because based on the witnesses, the condition was still intact on Saturday afternoon," said Jeffry on Sunday.
Jeffry stated that all the desecrated tombstones were non-Muslim burial sites. A total of ten tombstones were desecrated, consisting of three ceramic tombstones and seven wooden tombstones. "The motive for the desecration of these tombstones is still under investigation. This desecration has only occurred once at this cemetery," he said.
2. Crosses at Yogyakarta Cemetery pulled out and burned
On Saturday, April 6, 2019, several crosses at the Bethesda Mrican Cemetery complex, on Gejayan Street, Sleman, Yogyakarta, were pulled out and attempted to be burned by unknown individuals. According to Tempo's observation, some of the crosses could still be recognized by their shape, leaving black ash from the burned parts at the left and bottom ends.
The caretaker of the Bethesda cemetery, Hari Yuniarto, mentioned that it was first known that several crosses were pulled out and burned when contacted by relatives of the deceased.
Hari stated that about ten crosses were pulled out. The condition was known after he checked. All the crosses were gathered in one place. "Two or three were burned, the others were still intact, which I then stored," he said when met at the location.
The police have examined the cemetery complex. Sleman Resort Police Chief, Grand Commissioner Rizky Ferdiansyah, stated that they are still investigating the case of the cemetery desecration. "The motive for this cemetery desecration cannot be determined yet, but there is evidence of desecration, and we will investigate it further," said Rizky.
3. Tombstone cross in Yogyakarta cut into the shape of the letter T
In December 2018, a grave of a Catholic, Albertus Slamet Sugiardi, at the Jambon Cemetery, RT 53 RW 13, Purbayan Village, Kotagede Yogyakarta, caught attention. The cross-shaped tombstone in Slamet's grave was cut at the top, forming the shape of the letter 'T'.
The local community did not want any Catholic religious symbols because they wanted to designate the cemetery for Muslims only. They also requested Slamet's grave to be located at the edge of the cemetery.
Purbayan Kotagede community figure, Bedjo Mulyono, stated that the cutting was agreed upon by the residents. "The cutting of the cross was agreed upon by the residents and the deceased's family," said Bedjo when met on Tuesday, December 18, 2018.
Bedjo stated that the agreement to saw off the cross was initially unwritten. However, since the incident went viral, then on behalf of the deceased's family, represented by Slamet's wife, Maria Sutris Winarni, a written statement was made. Slamet's extended family declared their willingness to remove the cross symbol based on the suggestion of the cemetery caretaker, community figures, and village officials.
Responding to the incident, Governor and King of Yogyakarta Sri Sultan Hamengku Buwono X or Sultan HB X denied the perception that Yogyakarta is intolerant.
According to the Sultan, the issue was not about cutting the cross. "The Muslim community there included people of a different religion (Catholic). Instead of being buried at Mrican (a distant cemetery), they agreed to be buried there. That's it. Because it went viral, it became an issue," he said on Wednesday, December 19, 2018
4. Tombstone at Depok desecrated
A grave at the Kamboja Public Cemetery, Sukamaju Village, Cilodong District, Depok City, was desecrated, allegedly by irresponsible individuals. The grave's tombstone was broken, making it difficult to read the name of the deceased.
The chairman of the Kamboja Public Cemetery, Yandi Dahari, stated that the incident of the grave's desecration was revealed on Tuesday afternoon, September 13, 2022. "So when it happened, the family came and found the grave in a chaotic condition," said Yandi to Tempo in Depok, on Sunday, September 18, 2022.
Yandi, who learned about it from social media, immediately checked its validity and found that there was indeed damage to the grave. But he denied that the damage was deliberate mischief.
"According to me, it wasn't deliberate, but it seems that an irresponsible person dumped debris that hit the tombstone, because there were visible debris scattered on the grave," said Yandi.
The news of the damaged grave at the Kamboja Public Cemetery in Depok was posted on the official @depok24jam_official Instagram account. "Ma'am, I want to share. How could the grave be ruined, the location is at the Kober BBM Paragon Cemetery (Kamboja Public Cemetery). The grave's tombstone of my mother appears to have been broken and sprinkled with cement. Even though there is no construction activity in the surrounding area of the grave. Hopefully, the perpetrators will be found soon," wrote the caption of the post.
Pribadi Wicaksono, M. Syaifullah, and Ade Ridwan Yandwiputra contributed to the writing of this article.
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