Now, Arqam declared banned in all of Java

JAKARTA (JP): Yogyakarta has now banned all the activities of the Al Arqam, an Islamic movement headquartered in Malaysia, closing off the entire island of Java to the group which many Moslem leaders consider to deviate from true Islam.

In a decree dated Oct. 13, the Yogyakarta High Prosecution Office said that the ban was imposed because Al Arqam has the potential to disrupt religious life in the area, the Antara news agency reported yesterday.

Jakarta, West Java, Central Java and East Java are among the 13 provinces which have outlawed Al Arqam's activities. Yogyakarta became the 14th province in Indonesia.

The government has stressed that it has no intention of imposing a nationwide ban of Al Arqam and will leave the matter entirely in the hands of local governments.

Sunarno, an assistant in the intelligence section of Yogyakarta's High Prosecutor's Office, said the ban was imposed after hearing recommendations from the Ministry of Religious Affairs and the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI).

Staff from the prosecutor's office also reported that dialog between local leaders of Al Arqam and university students in Sleman took place last month and that they found this disconcerting.

"Such discussions could upset religious harmony and disturb peace and order," Sunarno said. (par)