'I'll go to church no matter what'

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has ordered security tightened ahead of the Christmas and New Year's holidays, following attacks on two churches in Palu, Central Sulawesi, and the recent discovery of crude bombs on a bus in Bandung. The Jakarta Post asked residents if the security warnings affected their holiday plans.

Advent Tambun, 30, teaches at the Spanish cultural center at Trisakti University in West Jakarta. He lives in Meruya Ilir, West Jakarta:

I don't care about the bomb threats. I don't think it will happen again. I think the bombing at the Australian Embassy in Kuningan, South Jakarta, was the last of its kind.

I also doubt the homemade bombs found aboard a bus in Bandung were going to be used to target church congregations during Christmas services. I will not take any special measures or avoid going to church to celebrate the special day.

I don't have any plans to go out of town for the holidays. I don't have any plan to go home to Medan, North Sumatra, since I just went home during Idul Fitri. Besides, going home just means spending a lot of money for transportation, right?

Heri Siswanto, 34, is a lecturer at a private university on Jl. TB Simatupang in South Jakarta. He lives with his family in Cilandak, South Jakarta:

I am not afraid at all. I have no reason to be scared of going to church. Terrorists choose their targets at random. It could happen anywhere, at anytime to anyone. Nowhere in the city is immune to such an attack. Perhaps it's just a matter of luck. If you are unlucky, you might become a victim.

The possibility of bombings does not affect my day-to-day activities. I'll go to the church closest to my house. I won't try and pick a church with tighter security, for instance, to try and keep something bad from happening to me.

-- The Jakarta Post