Prosperity bodes well for religion, Soeharto says

JAKARTA (JP): As Indonesians become more prosperous their faith will strengthen accordingly, President Soeharto said yesterday.

"Some people are of the opinion that religion will be alienated from individuals' personal and community life as they become wealthier. This will never happen in our country," Soeharto said in Boyolali, Central Java, on inaugurating a new haj dormitory.

In Indonesia, where religion has always been a very important aspect of daily life, greater affluence has strengthened people's faith, he said.

"The facts have shown that, with the advancing economy and the growing prosperity of our nation, more and more people are deepening their religious knowledge.

"Additional places of worship and religious education facilities have been built at people's own initiatives.

"New and majestic mosques have been built from big cities down to the smallest remote villages. The tiny mosques erected on the hills have added to the beauty of the localities. They bring serenity and peace," he said.

The Donohudan haj dormitory, which can accommodate up to 2,400 people, was built at a cost of Rp 25 billion ($10.5 million).

The facility complements the inauguration of the Surakarta airport as a new embarkation point for haj pilgrims. The other embarkation points are Jakarta, Medan, Surabaya, Balikpapan and Ujungpandang.

The massive operation to transport nearly 200,000 Indonesians to Saudi Arabia for the annual holy pilgrimage begins simultaneously at all six airports on March 15 this year.

Soeharto said the increasing number of people wishing to take part in the holy pilgrimage attested to his belief that Indonesian Moslems were using their increased incomes to strengthen their faith.

"Year on year, the number of Moslems wishing to perform the haj has increased; it now exceeds the quota," he said of the 200,000 limit imposed by Saudi Arabia for pilgrims from Indonesia.

Soeharto said he was most encouraged at the growing number of farmers and people from rural areas joining the pilgrimage. "Islam teaches us that the pilgrimage is obligatory only for those who have the economic means," he said.

The President said the government was serious about developing the overall religious lives of people and not simply building physical structures.

"We are carrying out development to turn our people into a nation that is advanced and independent both physically and spiritually."

Yesterday Soeharto also symbolically inaugurated, from Boyolali, the expansion of the Moewardi General Hospital in Surakarta, which he hoped would cater to the growing health care needs of the people in Central Java.

During the trip to Boyolali, the President was accompanied by Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher and Central Java Governor Soewardi. (emb)