Church pelting mars peace rally
YOGYAKARTA (JP): A rally by some 10,000 Muslims deploring sectarian violence in Maluku on Sunday was marred when some of those present pelted churches with stones on their way home.
Six churches -- the Javanese Christian Church on Jl. Tamansiswa, a Catholic church on Jl. A.M. Sangaji, a Catholic church on Jl. Bantul, a Catholic church on Jl. P. Senopati, a Christian church on Jl. DI Panjaitan Ngadinegaran and a Christian Church on Jl. Suprapto -- were slightly damaged in the attacks.
First Sgt. Waluyo from the Police Mobile Brigade unit suffered a head injury when he was attacked by a protester with a sharp weapon. Waluyo was trying to stop the downtown Fransiscus Xaverius Church from being attacked.
There were no other reports of injuries.
About 10,000 people joined the gathering at Kridosono Sports Hall in Yogyakarta, which was organized to show solidarity with fellow Muslims in Maluku.
Most of the participants were dressed in white. They came in cars, busses, trucks and motorcycles, forming a convoy stretching one kilometer from the venue.
At least 700 security personnel were deployed to secure the event, amid fears it could lead to full-scale rioting similar to that in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, early this month.
Addressing the crowd, Ja'far Umar Thalib from Yogyakarta's Ihya'ussunnah Islamic Boarding School said territorial boundaries should not obstruct Muslim solidarity. "If you attack Muslims anywhere in the world, you are attacking all the world's Muslims," Ja'far said.
Chairman of the Communication Forum of Ahlussunnah wal Jamaah Ayip Syafruddin Soeratman later denied that members of the forum were responsible for the attacks on churches. "All our members headed to Sleman after the gathering," Ayip said, referring to a neighboring town.
Yogyakarta Sultan Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono X expressed regrets over the incident, recalling that the administration and the security forces had asked that the rally be called off.
"Police must find the culprits. They must question the rally organizers. They are, at least, morally responsible," he said.
Fears of violence had closed shops near the stadium and on the main roads leading to it on Sunday.
The Kotabaru Church near the sports hall canceled its morning mass on Sunday "due to security concerns".
Security officers deployed to secure nearby churches, however, were unable to prevent the stone-throwing.
Anxiety about sectarian violence had been strong in Yogyakarta since the discovery of a homemade bomb in the city's main mosque last week.
President Abdurrahman Wahid said on Thursday he had ordered security forces to find the culprit.
A similar rally was also held by Muslims in Surakarta, some 60 kilometers northeast of Yogyakarta, overnight from Saturday to Sunday. The rally was attended by some 3,000 Muslims and later dispersed without incident, Detik.com online news service said.
A solidarity rally in Mataram, the largest city on Lombok island, east of Bali, turned violent this month when participants went on the rampage, burning at least 11 churches and torching or ransacking scores of other buildings belonging to non-Muslims over three days of violence. (44/swa/edt)