'RI model of religius tolerance'

'RI model of religius tolerance'

JAKARTA (JP): A visiting American religious scholar said
Indonesia is a model of religious tolerance that other countries
could do well to emulate.

Lawrence Sullivan, the director of the Center for the Study of
World Religions at Harvard University, is visiting Indonesia for
two weeks as a guest of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. He
said Indonesia had created a new approach to harmonious religious
coexistence.

"It has created a situation in which people from diverse
religious and cultural backgrounds can live in harmony," he told
reporters after meeting with Minister of Religious Affairs
Tarmizi Taher on Friday.

Religious harmony is the mainstay of Indonesia's development
effort, he pointed out.

"The country has successfully integrated religious
considerations into its development policies, and this is
something that cannot be found in countries in Europe or North
America," he said. "I'm here to study and understand it better."

Sullivan will meet religious leaders from the Indonesian
Council of Ulemas, the Communion of Churches in Indonesia, the
Roman Catholic Church, the Indonesian Buddhist Council, and the
Hindu Community.

He will also visit religious universities such as the State
Institute of Islamic Studies in Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, as
well some Christian and Catholic universities in Yogyakarta.

Minister Tarmizi discussed with Sullivan the international
conference on religions to be held here in July 1997. Indonesia,
Japan and Harvard University will sponsor the conference. (01)