Keep religion out of it

That emotions are high and tempers short among many of our people became apparent when a simple casus belli flared up into an ethnic conflict with a religious twist. It then escalated into fatal rioting. This is often the case when religious groups get involved for unclear reasons.

Another ugly side of life here today is that ever since the devastating monetary crisis hit this nation last year, more and more people seem to have become overly sensitive. The mood is more true in Jakarta, where thousands of people from the provinces have swarmed to escape the dire poverty in rural areas and try to make ends meet here.

The trend has made urban poverty even worse and public safety shakier. Various forms of unrest have erupted for one reason or another, be they politically, racially or religiously motivated.

What happened in the Ketapang area, West Jakarta, on Sunday in which at least 13 people were killed is the latest example. The first lesson from the tragedy is that it occurred at an amusement center. Similar places, which usually operate under the protection of security officers, have been involved in disputes with protesters over morality issues.

Obviously the city administration should review its policy of letting such establishments operate near places of worship.

The peculiarity of this latest riot is that it did not only involve religious antipathy but also ethnic animosity, which has been rare of late. Religion only came into it after a group wielding flags bearing Islamic symbols managed to incite bystanders.

In the ensuring madness a church was attacked by the flag- wielding group, which was angry that someone had thrown stones at its mosque. This group should have found the real culprits and helped protect other places of worship from a similar assault.

The involvement of religious groups, notably Moslems, seems to have regretfully become commonplace. The groups often claim to shoulder outstanding social and religious responsibilities and believe they have to act whenever Islam is affected. What many of them seem to forget is that we are a nation of over 200 million people and no one can claim to have the right to speak on behalf of all. Second, they also seem to forget that in any manifestation they should never be on the wrong side of the law. This should be clear to them after the repeated reminders by religious leaders that Islam means peace and its teachings do not condone harming even pets or damaging trees, not even in cases of war.

We are sorry to note that many groups have gone beyond caring about being involved in a conflict with fellow Moslems. These radical groups tarnish Islam's good image, not only locally but also internationally, and their actions are counterproductive to the law-abiding Moslem community in general. They show a frightening side to the religion, which in its pure form promotes peace and tolerance.

The trend is clearly inseparable from the political game played by the authorities today. President B. J. Habibie, who is hungry for popular support, seems particularly desirous to play the Moslem card. Armed Forces Commander Gen. Wiranto was clearly behind the "voluntary" Moslem militia deployed during the recent Special Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), the very militia who eventually clashed with fellow Moslems and local people.

Sunday's tragedy also mocks the recent statement calling for interreligious peace made by leaders of all religious groups here, after their meeting at the residence of Abdurrahman Wahid, chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama Moslem organization.

Abdurrahman said after the meeting that reconciliation was needed not only between the government and opposing groups and students, but also between intra-religious groups and peoples of different creeds.

What religious leaders urgently need to do is reduce the over- sensitivity and narrow-mindedness among their congregations so that people of all religions can build a common platform to forge a mature relationship.