City residents celebrate peaceful Christmas joyfully<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Thousands of Jakartans celebrated a peaceful
\nChristmas yesterday, having to deal with isolated traffic
\ncongestion only.<\/p>\n
Approximately 1,000 people attended midnight mass on Christmas
\nEve at Jakarta Cathedral in Central Jakarta, their cars creating
\nlong queues and congesting makeshift parking spaces in the areas
\nsurrounding the city's largest church.<\/p>\n
A similar view occurred at all of the city's churches, big and
\nsmall, as well as residential houses temporarily used for mass on
\nChristmas Eve.<\/p>\n
A number of military and police personnel were seen on guard
\naround almost every church throughout the city since Sunday
\nevening until late yesterday morning.<\/p>\n
Christians, totaling 700,000, or 7 percent of Jakarta's
\npopulation of 10 million, started to arrive at churches for
\nmidnight mass at 7 p.m. on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Fashionably dressed and carrying Bibles, the churchgoers said
\nthey came as early as possible in order to avoid car-parking
\ntroubles.<\/p>\n
"We have to come as early as possible to avoid troubles in
\nparking our car. This way, we can feel fresh and happy attending
\nthis religious gathering," a congregation member told The Jakarta
\nPost before stepping inside a church on Jl. Juraganan, South
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
As the churchyard did not have a parking lot, the
\ncongregation's cars created a long line of vehicles parked on the
\nside of the three-lane street.<\/p>\n
As soon as the midnight service ended, hundreds of police and
\nmilitary personnel struggled to maintain order in the jammed
\nchurchyard. Similar views of police officers helping to keep the
\ntraffic flow smooth from most churches was seen throughout the
\ncity.<\/p>\n
Several incidents<\/p>\n
Police said no serious congesting occurred. Heavy traffic
\nhappened only at several of the larger churches in South, Central
\nand North Jakarta. No serious crimes or traffic accidents were
\nreported.<\/p>\n
According to City Police spokesman Lt. Col. Iman Haryatna,
\nthere were only several incidents, including a small fire in
\nCentral Jakarta and a taxi robbery in South Jakarta, during
\nChristmas Eve and Christmas Day.<\/p>\n
"So far, so good," Iman told the Post yesterday afternoon.<\/p>\n
A total of 12,000 city police and military personnel were
\ndeployed to secure places of worship, entertainment and business
\ncenters and terminals during Christmas Eve and the holidays.<\/p>\n
Hectic Jakarta was quite different the past two days as only a
\nfew vehicles were seen roaring down the streets and a small
\nnumber of visitors went to entertainment and shopping centers.<\/p>\n
Most of the busy thoroughfares in sprawling Jakarta, such as
\nJl. Gadjah Mada, Jl. Panglima Polim, Jl. R.S. Fatmawati, Jl.
\nCiputat Raya, Jl. Lebak Bulus, Jl. Sudirman, Jl. Thamrin, and Jl.
\nGatot Subroto were almost deserted throughout the cloudy days.<\/p>\n
Smaller stores were closed on Sunday and yesterday but many
\ndepartment stores and supermarkets in and around the city
\nremained open.<\/p>\n
A number of stores were still selling pictures of Jesus and
\nSanta Claus, as well as Christmas decorations.<\/p>\n
On the streets, traditional trumpet sellers have started
\noffering their annual merchandise to passers-by preparing to
\ncelebrate New Year's Eve. (bsr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-residents-celebrate-peaceful-christmas-joyfully-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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