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Residents, hard-line groups protest Bandung church

Jakarta Post - April 11, 2016

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Arya Dipa – Supported by hard-line groups, residents of Jatisari village, Buahbatu district held a rally on Sunday to oppose the presence of the East Bandung Karo Batak Protestant Church (GBKP) in Kawaluyaan, Bandung, West Java.

The demonstration, which was supported by the Muslim Ulama Forum, Islamic Reformist Movement, and the Islam Defenders Front, took place on the street in front and beside the church building.

Protesters on a pickup truck addressed the crowd through loudspeakers and held banners reading: "We, residents of RW 06 Jatisari subdistrict, Buahbatu district, strongly object to the presence of the church in RW 06."

Dozens of police and military personnel were deployed to safeguard the church.

East Bandung GBKP leader Sura Purba Saputra said the protest took place during a worship session, which was the sixth that the church had held. "There should not be a demonstration at a place of worship," Sura said by phone.

Church administrators obtained a building permit for the construction of the GBKP in the Kawaluyaan area on June 20, 2012. On Dec. 18, 2015, the Bandung City Integrated Licensing Office said that all requirements for the construction of the house of worship had been fulfilled.

The construction of the new church was aimed at accommodating around 500 churchgoers who were previously forced to cram into a church on Jl. Lombok. The church, added Sura, was unable to accommodate the entire congregation of 3,000 people.

Church administrators said the rally was held to coincide with the appearance of Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil, who was due to officially inaugurate the church that day.

"Communication remained open until last night and they said the mayor would arrive at 9 a.m., but the demo began at 8:30 a.m.," Sura said, adding that churchgoers' children had prepared a dance performance to greet the mayor. However, due to the demonstration, the mayor canceled his appearance.

Sura suggested that protesters take legal action if they opposed the presence of the church in their neighborhood. "They should have taken their objections to the State Administrative Court," he said.

Regarding the incident, advocacy division head of the Bandung Legal Aid Institute (LBH) Harold Aaron expressed concern that an incident like this had occurred again.

"This incident is due to the government's inability to properly understand facilitation issues, not merely administrative matters related to licensing, but also how to give the public an understanding of the meaning of diversity in the community," said Harold, who was present at the protest.

Based on Bandung LBH records, religious discrimination remains a problem in Bandung, and Ahmadiyah, Shia and Christian communities continue to be victims.

"There are three aspects of the infringement of religious freedom, namely freedom to practice religion, worship and religious observance, establishment and use of places of worship, as well as teaching and religious education," Harold said, adding that the government had ignored the issue rather than actively taking measures to address it.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/04/11/residents-hard-line-groups-protest-bandung-church.html.