Life gets slower on first day of fast

The Jakarta Post, Semarang/Medan/Banda Aceh/Indramayu

Millions of Indonesian Muslims, who account for some 85 percent of the total 220 million population in the country, began fasting dawn-to-dusk on Friday, the first day of Ramadhan.

As usual, schools were closed and government offices were largely empty at the beginning of the fasting month, while activities on streets slowed down, with little traffic congestion.

The ritual went peacefully despite mounting demands earlier from Muslim activists nationwide that government and businessmen shut down amusement centers, nightspots and red-light areas during Ramadhan and the Idul Fitri holiday.

In Semarang, the capital of Central Java province, almost all schools were closed from Friday to Saturday, including Christian and Catholic schools. The schools were closed from order by the Semarang municipal education office.

Ah Lun, an elementary school student at Don Bosco Catholic elementary school here, however, had no idea about the holiday.

"Our teacher simply told us that we had to study at home from Friday to Saturday," he said.

Government offices in Semarang, Banda Aceh and Medan were empty at 9 a.m, with few government employees to be seen.

High ranking government officials were apparently indifferent over the attitude of their subordinates that may cost public services. The leaders understood that their subordinates had to get up at dawn to break the fast meal, or sahur, so that slow activities were allowed on the first day of Ramadhan.

"They were late probably because they had to do a lot of preparations during Ramadhan, as in attending the evening prayer tarawih, reciting the Koran or the morning prayer, subuh.

"We understand that the activities have slowed down on the first day of Ramadhan," said Abdillah, the Mayor of Medan municipality, in the capital of North Sumatra province.

He added that he would not immediately impose sanctions to those Muslim civil servants who came late or even skipped the office on the first day of Ramadhan. He only called on them that fasting should not dampen their productivities.

"It is acceptable for the first day, but after that, they have to resume work at the usual pace," he said.

In Aceh province, thousands of fishermen took a holiday on the first day of Ramadhan. This has been a tradition that they did not go to sea on the first day of fasting, moreover people mostly chose to buy meat rather than fish for sahur.

In the meantime, they chose to repair their nets and boats.

Slow activities were also seen in traditional markets in the city of Semarang, including the Jatingaleh market, where traders began opening their stalls at 9 a.m and immediately left the markets some four hours later.

In stark contrast, offices of private companies were seen bustling on Friday, which seemed like a normal working day.

While government leaders in Medan and other cities were indifferent over the attitude of their subordinates, the case was different in Indramayu regency, West Java province.

Here, officials at Public Order Agency in Indramayu apprehended on Friday, 112 civil servants with the regental government administration for playing truant on the first day of Ramadhan.

They were nabbed in shopping malls, amusement centers and other public places during the day.

Safrudin, the chief of the Indramayu Public Order Agency, said that the strict measure was aimed at cleaning the image of civil servants in the regency.

The random raid was carried out between 10 a.m to 3 p.m.

During the raid, officials at the agency recorded the identity of the arrested civil servants and units where they worked.

The agency would then report the civil servants to their direct superiors, who would later impose some form of punishment to delinquent civil servants.