ABRI chief warns military of provocation
MEDAN, North Sumatra (JP): Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung warned soldiers Saturday to beware of attempts made to pit them against the public.
Speaking during a Christmas celebration at Hermina Hall here, Feisal said soldiers must work to strengthen the present religious harmony while practicing their own religious faith.
"(A faithful) congregation won't be easily provoked by unfounded rumors, nor will they be easily coaxed to fight against another," he said.
Feisal was speaking at a Christmas celebration attended by 3,000 people, comprising soldiers from the city garrison and enthusiastic local residents.
Also present was Doloksaribu, a priest from the North Sumatra chapter of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI).
In his address, Feisal also urged soldiers not to simply celebrate Christmas as an "annual routine" but instead be introspective and become more faithful to God.
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Feisal said that national development should be greeted in the same that Christians welcome Christmas as "joyful news".
"Development is joyful news," the military chief, who also used the occasion to hand over hundreds of Christmas packages to the forces' members and a computer set to PGI, said.
He called on Armed Forces members to "transform" the value and spirit of Christmas to incorporate "the spirit of development".
"On the other hand, the dynamics of development must also be conducive to the development and practice of religious values."
"A good soldier is a religious soldier ... It is not an absolute that strong weapons always win battles and wars. But it is absolutely necessary for a soldiers to fortify their moral integrity and attitude," he remarked.
Feisal conceded that the hardest part of development has been in the sociocultural field, which he described as "dynamic, sensitive and vulnerable".
He said the sociocultural field embodied the issues of ethnic, religious, race, and intergroup relations.
"It is in this context that any efforts to nurture tolerance and solidarity among religious groups should be regarded as an urgent and important effort."
He called on soldiers to be "creative" in fostering and strengthening cooperation between different religious groups in society.
Feisal warned his audience of the tough challenges that have been created by globalization, which he said "might not be as easy to face as those in the past".
"Ethical values and religious faith have become the pillars of our lives and without (such beliefs), we'll see more violations of ethical values such as abortion, sexual harassment, crime, and other forms of moral decadence."
Feisal during the ceremony expressed his joy to be able to meet with soldiers on such an informal occasion. He took the opportunity to symbolically present various gifts including a computer to the North Sumatra chapter of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI). (21/aan)