Major rally set to hit Jakarta
Major rally set to hit Jakarta
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Thousands of demonstrators are expected to hold rallies at the
House of Representatives on Tuesday in support of or against the
controversial education bill, raising fears of clashes between
rival protesters and severe traffic congestion across Jakarta.
Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI) secretary Din Syamsuddin
claimed that one million Muslims would occupy the House compound
on Tuesday if the bill was postponed.
"We are expecting a crowd that reaches one million supporters
for the bill's endorsement," Din, also vice chairman of
Muhammadiyah, told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
Din said the crowd would consist of members of dozens of
groups, including Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah -- the
country's two largest Muslim organizations -- the Prosperous
Justice Party (PKS), MUI, Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), Mosque
Youth and others.
However, NU leader Hasyim Muzadi opposes the bill and has
demanded changes to its contentious articles.
Din said the protesters were expected to begin gathering at 7
a.m. in the East Parking Lot of the Bung Karno Sports Stadium,
Central Jakarta, from where they would march to the nearby House
compound on Jl. Gatot Subroto.
The protest is to put pressure on the House to pass the bill
when it convenes for a plenary session on Tuesday.
Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo said police were
ready to ensure security during Tuesday's protest.
"The number of police officers deployed to secure the rally
will depend on the situation in the field," he said, declining to
specify numbers.
He said police had yet to receive letters from those
organizations detailing their demonstration plans.
"If the demonstrators fail to report their plans in advance,
we have the authority to disperse them," Prasetyo said.
Numerous groups have protested for and against the bill. Those
in support are mostly Muslim groups, while those opposing it are
mostly Catholic and Protestant organizations.
Protests by rival groups continued in Jakarta and other cities
in several parts of the country on Monday.
The biggest rally was in the Central Java capital of Semarang,
involving thousands of demonstrators. Similar demonstrations were
also held in Medan in North Sumatra, Makassar in South Sulawesi
and Surabaya in East Java.
The point of contention is the articles requiring all schools,
including private religious-based schools, to provide religious
instruction for students from different faiths.
Many private Christian schools have large numbers of Muslim
students and there is an apparent fear that those students may be
converted away from Islam.
However, the Christian groups see the stipulation as state
intervention in private educational institutions.