Beyond rice and rallies: Indonesia needs a political vision for Palestine

On 3^rd August, thousands of Indonesians gathered at the National Monument in Jakarta to stand with Gaza. Organized by the Indonesian Ulema Council and the Aliansi Rakyat Indonesia Bela Palestina, the protest was peaceful, massive, and meticulously planned. Over 2,100 police officers were deployed. Medical teams were ready. Traffic was controlled. Participants prayed, gave speeches, and demanded the opening of the Rafah crossing to allow aid into Gaza.

A day earlier, demonstrators rallied outside the Egyptian Embassy with the same demand: stop the starvation, open the border, end the siege.

These actions were genuine and heartfelt. But they reveal a deeper problem. For all their moral power, Indonesia’s response — both from the public and the government — remains focused on charity and symbolism, not political strategy.

Indonesia has delivered more than 4,400 tons of aid and millions of dollars in assistance to Palestine. At the rally, Foreign Minister Sugiono announced an additional shipment of 10,000 tons of rice. The government has also offered 10,000 to 20,000 hectares of farmland in South Sumatra and Kalimantan, to be cultivated in partnership with Palestinian counterparts to help secure long-term food supplies. These are real commitments, backed by real resources.

They show Indonesia’s compassion. But compassion alone is not enough.

READ: Indonesia would never accept colonial rule—why should Palestine?

Gaza’s crisis is not a humanitarian accident. It is the result of deliberate policy. Gaza is not starving because of drought or disaster. It is being starved. Infrastructure has been razed. The health system has collapsed. Food insecurity is being used as a weapon. Since October 2023, over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed. The majority of them were women and children. This is not simply war. As Indonesia’s own foreign minister stated: it is genocide.

So how many tons of rice will it take to end apartheid? How many hectares of farmland can compensate for stolen homes in Hebron or the bombed-out neighborhoods of Rafah? Humanitarian aid saves lives — and that matters. But it does not confront the system that causes the suffering. In some ways, it enables the world to look away, comforted by the illusion that help is being sent, while the root crime continues unchecked.

Street protests face a similar dilemma. Without clear, strategic demands, they risk becoming emotional expressions rather than political interventions. If Indonesia’s solidarity with Palestine is to mean more than sympathy, it must now center on justice — not just relief. And justice cannot be built on the illusion that a two-state solution is still possible.

That vision — of a Palestinian state existing peacefully alongside Israel — is no longer viable. It has been systematically erased by decades of Israeli settlement expansion, land theft, and legal apartheid. The geography of a Palestinian state simply no longer exists. The West Bank is fragmented by settlements and military zones. Gaza is besieged. East Jerusalem is being annexed in slow motion. The Palestinian diaspora remains stateless.

To continue promoting the two-state model is not diplomacy — it is denial. At best, it’s wishful thinking. At worst, it’s complicity.

Indonesia must now do what few governments are willing to do: speak plainly. This conflict will not be solved by redrawing fantasy borders or pretending that two equal parties are negotiating in good faith. The only solution that reflects the reality on the ground is a single state across all of historic Palestine — a state in which Jews, Muslims, Christians, and others live as equal citizens, under one law, with equal rights, protections, and political power.

READ: France’s recognition of Palestine risks helping Israel—Indonesia should rethink its applause

That is not a utopian dream. It is the only path that confronts the core injustice of this conflict: the denial of Palestinian humanity.

Indonesia has long declared its opposition to colonialism “in all its forms.” But opposing colonialism must mean more than condemnation — it must mean advocacy.

Indonesia must move beyond abstract support for Palestinian statehood and begin explicitly pushing for a political solution that is just, viable, and inclusive. That means naming the apartheid. That means rejecting the two-state mirage. And that means building international support for a single democratic state.

Indonesia has sent rice. It has offered land. It has filled the streets with solidarity. Now it must speak clearly on the world stage. Say what must be said. Lead where others will not. Because the road to justice begins with truth.

And the truth is this: there is only one future worth fighting for — one state, with equal rights for all.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.