Chinese New Year holiday optional

Chinese New Year holiday optional

JAKARTA: Chinese New Year, which falls this year on Feb. 12, is not a national holiday, but an optional holiday, a religious affairs ministry official says.

"Optional holiday means its implementation depends on individual discretion, whether to make it a holiday or not," said the Ministry of Religious Affairs' public relations chief Muhamad Kailani in Bandung, West Java, recently.

The Chinese New Year has never been celebrated as a national holiday in Indonesia, but confusion loomed after authorities realized that one calendar had marked Feb. 12 in red, signifying a national holiday, while most other calendars printed Feb. 12 in black, signifying a normal workday. The religious affairs ministry's statement is expected to end the confusion.

Muhamad Kailani said Chinese New Year, or Imlek as it is known in Indonesia, has become an optional holiday since 2001.

Advisor to the Khong Hu Cu Religious Council Yansen D. said in Bandung, West Java, on Tuesday that declaring Imlek as an optional holiday would suffice as it reflected the government's sensitiveness to the aspirations of Khong Hu Cu followers. -- Antara