Don't leave home without your umbrella during Idul Fitri because
Don't leave home without your umbrella during Idul Fitri because the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) predicts afternoon and evening showers on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 in Greater Jakarta.
The agency also predicts cloudy skies on the eve of Idul Fitri, with light showers in several areas such as in South Jakarta, West Jakarta, East Jakarta, Bogor, Tangerang, and Bekasi, that could dampen the takbiran spirit.
The eve of Idul Fitri is usually celebrated by takbiran parades, when people cruise through the city in open vehicles chanting praises to Allah and beating drums to mark the end of Ramadhan.
BMG's head of public weather information Achmad Zakir said on Tuesday that evening showers were the trade mark of the east- southeasterly wind that was prevalent this month.
He said that more rain was expected in December when the wind changes from an east-southeasterly direction to a more westerly direction.
"The east-southeasterly wind brings rains in the evenings, as is happening now. But the west winds will bring more unpredictable rains, that could last all day, all night and even for days," Zakir told The Jakarta Post.
As a consequence, daily precipitation will also rise by 10 percent to 20 percent in December, he said, explaining that while this does not automatically mean floods for Jakarta, people should still be prepared for the possibility.
"As we enter December there will be more rain falling evenly around Jakarta, meaning the risk of floods will be higher in more areas around the city," Zakir said.
While it is unlikely that serious floods as occurred in 2003 will happen this year, floods will likely occur after heavy rains for three consecutive days.
"At that time we will have alerted the authorities of possible flooding," he said, explaining that the BMG gives out routine reports on monthly precipitation, and weekly, daily and spot weather reports.
Zakir also warned of possible flash floods from Bogor, where rains will also become more frequent in December.
"If precipitation in Bogor reaches more than 50 millimeters a day, and it also rains in Jakarta, that's when we must be extra prepared for floods," he said.
Rains in the coming weeks can also be a hazard for travelers on their way to their hometowns for the Idul Fitri holiday.
"Although not the only reason, heavy rains in several areas could cause flooding and landslides," BMG director Sri Woro Harijono said in a press conference on Tuesday.
She said several areas in West Java such as the Pandeglang regency, Lebak, Sukabumi, Bogor, Cianjur, Bandung, southern Garut, parts of southern Tasikmalaya, Purwakarta, as well as the Cilacap regency in Central Java, and northern Gresik in East Java, were prone to floods and landslides.
The head of the Geological Disaster Mitigation Division at the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources, Surono, explained that West Java was most prone to floods and landslides due to the area's geological condition.
He also warned travelers to be careful crossing the new Cipularang toll road toward Bandung, West Java, as it crosses a landslide-prone area.
"Of course preventive measures have been taken, the water drainage system is better, for example, so that rainwater will not have time to be absorbed by the earth and weaken its composition," Surono explained.
2. Sermon: 2 lines x 32 Messages of peace, love dominate this year's Idul Fitri sermons
Peace and returning to God's path will be two of the central Idul Fitri messages in sermons at large mosques across the capital Thursday.
Noted Muslim cleric Quraish Shihab, in his prepared sermon to be delivered at Sunda Kelapa Mosque in Menteng, Central Jakarta, will remind people of the importance of peace in all parts of life.
"If you cannot help other people, then make sure you do not cause them harm," Quraish's sermon obtained by The Jakarta Post on Tuesday, says.
Indonesia, the world's most-populous Muslim country, has been plagued by religious conflicts in the past few years in which thousands of people have died.
In Poso, Central Sulawesi, where religious conflicts between Muslims and Christians have killed over 2,000 people in the past five years, three Christian girls were brutally beheaded last week.
Dozens of Christian houses of worship in West Java, Central Java and Greater Jakarta have also been closed down by Muslim hard-liners, raising fears of bloody conflicts among followers.
The highlight of the Ramadhan fasting month for Indonesians is the mass prayer on lebaran morning -- which this year falls on Thursday -- when according to Muslim beliefs one is cleansed again, a process known as Idul Fitri.
The sermons following the prayers are an integral and important part of this cleansing, when Muslims are reminded to return to God's path.
Bandung Islamic University (Unisba) lecturer Hassanoeddin is scheduled to give an Idul Fitri sermon at Cut Meutia Mosque in Kebon Sirih, Central Jakarta.
"He will lecture on the merits of fasting for devotion to God," an employee at the Cut Meutia Mosque, Heri Hermawan, told the Post on Tuesday.
He said the mass prayer on Thursday would be conducted at 7 a.m. led by Mahfud Mustofa.
Speaking at the Baitul Ihsan Bank Indonesia Mosque on Jl. Budi Kemuliaan in Central Jakarta will be Abdul Munir Mulkhan, the rector of Sunan Kalijaga Islamic University in Yogyakarta.
The theme of Abdul Munir's sermon would be "Idul Fitri's human angels", Baitul Ihsan Mosque secretariat head Sutarno Madiman said.
"The mass prayer will be held at 7 a.m. on the grounds of the Flag Ceremony Plaza at Bank Indonesia," he said.
A mass Idul Fitri prayer at the Istiqlal Grand Mosque -- where President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla are to pray -- will be led by Nasrullah Jamaluddin, with a sermon by Malang State Islamic University rector Imam Suprayogo.
Meanwhile, Al Azhar Mosque and Pondok Indah Mosque, both in South Jakarta, will invite Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University lecturers Shobahussurur and Mustofa Yaqub respectively.
3. Parks: 2 lines x 27 Menteng park development to cost Rp 55.5 billion Damar Harsanto The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The City Parks Agency revealed Tuesday that the administration was set to convert the historic stadium of city soccer team Persija into a community park, for an estimated cost of Rp 55.5 billion.
"The development of the park is slated to start early next year and it will be completed by the end of 2006," agency head Sarwo Handhayani told reporters at City Hall.
Handhayani said the park would be equipped with three futsal fields, 12 badminton courts, six basketball courts, a jogging track and skating space.
"There will be a playground for children and a plaza for visitors to hold various indoor activities, like aerobics, even yoga," she said.
The entire area of the park will be able to accommodate a total of 1,200 visitors.
The park will also have a basement with parking space for at least 200 cars.
Governor Sutiyoso said the conversion of the poorly managed historic park into a community park was meant to cater for residents' need for space to conduct community activities.
"The conversion is for the greater interest of residents. We won't convert the park for use as commercial premises," he asserted.
The planned parking area that would take up space in the park, he said, was necessary to reduce chronic traffic congestion in the area.
"When the parking lot is operational, we will restrict on- street parking in the area," he said.
Traffic congestion is common in the area around the stadium with many building tenants and visitors parking on the streets. Parked vehicles on Jl. HOS Cokroaminoto often occupy two of the street's three lanes.
Notwithstanding Sutiyoso's statement that the stadium would not be turned over to commercial interests, however, the proposal outlined by the parks agency allocates space for cafes, restaurants and street vendors.
The planned conversion has been criticized by many people who assume a hidden agenda on the part of the administration to develop the area for commercial purposes, in addition objections from heritage lovers.
The stadium was one of the country's first modern city parks and was designed by architect P.A.J Moojen during Dutch colonial period in 1910.
A gubernatorial decree on the preservation of heritage buildings and historic sites classified the stadium, originally called by the Dutch name Voetbalbond Indische Omstreken, or Viosveld, as an historic site.
Since 1961, the stadium has become the home training ground for the Persija soccer club.
The administration said that it would provide a new home training ground for the soccer team in Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta in exchange for the Menteng stadium.
In addition to the Menteng park, the parks agency is currently finalizing the construction of the Prince Diponegoro fountain and statue on Jl. Diponegoro, Central Jakarta, and the shifting of the Kartini statue from Jl. Diponegoro to the National Monument Park (Monas).
4. Open: 2 lines x 27 Sutiyoso invites Jakartans to Idul Fitri gathering JP/8/open
The Jakarta Post Jakarta
Governor Sutiyoso is inviting Jakarta residents, including the poor, to come to his official residence in Central Jakarta to celebrate Idul Fitri with his family on Thursday.
"Everybody, including the poor, is invited. My residence will be open to the public (on Thursday)," Sutiyoso said at City Hall on Tuesday.
Idul Fitri celebrations, which mark the end of Ramadhan, will fall on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4 this year. High-ranking officials usually open their homes to their staff and the public at large.
Sutiyoso said that his home on Jl. Taman Suropati No. 7 in Menteng, Central Jakarta would be open from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m..
"Before that, I will visit the residences of the President (Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono), Vice President (Jusuf Kalla) and Minister of Home Affairs (Lt. Gen. (ret) Muh. Ma'aruf," he said.
As in the previous years, Sutiyoso said he would provide meals for his guests.
Aside from city officials, political party leaders, businesspeople and ambassadors of foreign countries often come to Sutiyoso's residence during Idul Fitri.
Sutiyoso said the open house would serve as an opportunity to ask for forgiveness from one another.
The governor, who is also known for his policy of preventing unskilled migrants from coming to the capital to seek work, is himself not a native of Jakarta.
Born in Semarang, Central Java in 1944, Sutiyoso will also visit his hometown on the second day of Idul Fitri, a tradition known here as mudik.
Around 2.5 million Jakarta residents will leave for their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri.
"But, I will only spend one day (in Semarang) to meet old friends and relatives there. I cannot take any more time since my heart remains here in Jakarta while I am there," he said half- jokingly.
During the trip to Semarang, he will be accompanied by his wife Setyorini and daughters Yessi Riana Dilliyanti and Renny Yosnita Ariyanti, and will drop by at the residence of his mother and father-in-law in Magelang, also in Central Java.