Depiction of Prophet protested

JAKARTA (JP): Ten Moslem students staged a peaceful demonstration outside the United States embassy yesterday over what they called "America's intolerance of Islam".

The representatives of the Jakarta Moslem Students Forum protested the depiction of Prophet Muhammad in a relief beside the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C.

The students gathered for half an hour waving posters condemning the U.S. government. The posters read "America is the worst liar" and "USA supports Jews terrorist".

Ed McWilliams, the embassy's attache of political affairs, met the protesters.

One of the students, Arif Jatnika, asked McWilliams to relay their protest to Washington.

In a letter addressed to the U.S. government, the students stated that the depiction of the Prophet insulted Moslems.

They demanded that the relief be demolished.

The Republika daily reported earlier that the Supreme Court building of the United States was decorated with the reliefs of famous figures, including prophets. Local Moslem communities recently discovered that a relief of a person wielding a sword and waving the Holy Koran, which was said to be Prophet Muhammad, was among the reliefs. The relief was inscribed with the sentence: "The founder of Islam".

American Moslems have demanded that the relief's demolition. Islam prohibits models of the prophet. Furthermore, Prophet Muhammad did not found Islam but carried the teaching of Islam from Allah. (11)