Sari Yuliati and Gus Miftah Promote Interfaith Collaboration in Mataram

Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives Sari Yuliati and the head of the Ora Aji Islamic Boarding School, KH Miftah Maulana Habiburrahman (Gus Miftah), are encouraging interfaith collaboration in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, to serve as an example for strengthening religious moderation.

Gus Miftah expressed his appreciation for the presence of interfaith leaders alongside their respective congregations, who gathered in one place to offer prayers according to their own beliefs. “We understand that this nation will become great through harmony, and tonight that can be seen in the City of Mataram,” he said after attending the remembrance and national prayer event at Sangkareang Field, Mataram, on Wednesday evening.

He hopes the remembrance and national prayer activity can become both an example and a tradition implemented in other regions across Indonesia. “Our hope is that this can become a national tradition, where people can sit together regardless of religion. That is why I appreciate tonight’s event,” he stated. “We will report that what exists in Mataram can become a tradition for the nation. We hope to convey to the President that Mataram can be a city of tolerance in Indonesia.”

Meanwhile, Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives Sari Yuliati said she was proud that NTB, comprising ten regencies and cities, could be an example of diversity and interfaith harmony. According to her, although the majority of NTB’s population is Muslim, people from minority groups can live harmoniously in diversity. “When I visited an elementary school in Cakranegara, 99 percent of the students were Hindu, yet they could study safely without bullying or racism,” she noted. The event was attended by thousands of followers from various religions, including Islam, Catholic Christianity, Protestant Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism.