Church closures continue to cause public concern<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
The closure of churches in Bandung and surrounding areas over the
\npast two years has caused concern among people of different
\nfaiths who consider the incidents a threat to religious harmony
\nin the country.<\/p>\n
On Saturday afternoon, around 1,500 people of various
\nreligions rallied at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in
\nCentral Jakarta to pressure the government to prove its
\ncommitment to religious freedom, Antara reported.<\/p>\n
The demonstrators, who included former president Abdurrahman
\n"Gus Dur" Wahid and former House of Representatives speaker Akbar
\nTandjung, also prayed together.<\/p>\n
"We are concerned about the forcible closure of Christian
\nhouses of worship, which we consider a blow to brotherhood among
\npeople of different faiths here," one rally participant, Hendra
\nWaskita, said.<\/p>\n
After the rally, the crowd marched to the State Palace while
\nunfurling banners that stated their demand that discrimination be
\neliminated and for religious harmony.<\/p>\n
The latest forcible closures of house of worship occurred on
\nSaturday, with Muslim hard-liners claiming that one church in
\nBandung and another in South Jakarta lacked permits.<\/p>\n
The hard-liners have also accused the church congregations of
\nconverting Muslims to Christianity.<\/p>\n
The Christian community in Bandung, where 23 houses of worship
\nhave been shut down by the Muslim hard-liners since 2003, have
\ndeemed a 1969 joint ministerial decree the root of the problem.<\/p>\n
The decree requires that congregations wishing to build a
\nhouse of worship obtain a permit from the head of the local
\nadministration and seek permission from local residents. With
\nIndonesia being predominantly Muslim, minority Christians often
\nhave difficulties in building churches and instead use houses,
\nshop-houses or hotels to hold services.<\/p>\n
"We planned to renovate our church to accommodate the growing
\ncongregation, but the plan never materialized due to resistance
\nfrom local people, who are mostly Muslims, even though the land
\nbelongs to us," said Rieska Wulandari, 26, a member of the Java
\nChristian Church. The church was built in 1960.<\/p>\n
She said there was no reason to close a church no matter what.<\/p>\n
"How can people restrict others of a different faith from
\npraying? It goes against people's rights," she said.<\/p>\n
She called on followers of other religions to understand the
\ndifficulties facing Christians in building churches, which often
\nprompted them to use other buildings as houses of worship.<\/p>\n
Sugeng Sumaryadi, a Protestant, suggested that church
\ncongregations intensify communication with local people and
\ngovernment to prevent further incidents.<\/p>\n
"The closures serve as a lesson for us Christians to enhance
\ncommunication with all parties so that they understand our need
\nfor houses of worship," Sugeng said.<\/p>\n
He said he understood that some people resented religious
\nactivities in their residential areas as they had the tendency to
\ndisrupt the tranquility of an area.<\/p>\n
"If we wanted to turn a house into business premises such as a
\nfactory outlet, for example, we would be required to secure a
\npermit. Before obtaining a permit from the government, it would
\nbe necessary to get permission from residents because activities
\nor crowds of customers would certainly bother them," he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, head of West Java chapter of the Indonesia Ulema
\nCouncil (MUI), Hafidz Usman, said he had not heard of any church
\nclosures.<\/p>\n
"They were private residences that served as houses of
\nworship. Annoyed residents reported them to the authorities,
\nwhich went unheeded. They finally protested to the local
\nadministration and demanded that action be taken," he said.<\/p>\n
Hafidz said the joint ministerial decree regulated the issue
\naccordingly. He said Muslims also faced difficulties in building
\nmosques in predominantly Christian areas, particularly in eastern
\nIndonesia.<\/p>\n
He called on local administrations to quickly respond to
\npeople's aspirations in a bid to prevent similar incidents from
\noccurring.<\/p>",
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