Residents in Surabaya have deemed calls by Muslim organizations to shut down a Jewish synagogue in the city’s business district an “exaggeration” and unnecessary.

The call for the closure has been seen as largely an emotional reaction to Israeli attacks on Gaza Strip.

The synagogue, which has existed in Surabaya for the past 30 years, is the only one in the country. Standing on a 900-meter plot of land on Jl. Kayoon, its existence has never raised problems for the locals, city authorities or religious institutions.

“Since its establishment, no residents have ever raised any objections to the Jewish community’s weekly religious activities at the synagogue. We accept their presence as part of our community, even Rifka Shayes, who guards the compound, feels proud to be called arek Surabaya [young person of Surabaya],” informal leader of the area Kadaruslan told The Jakarta Post on Friday. Rifka Shayes, a Jewish worshipper with Dutch citizenship, and her family run the synagogue.

Dozens of protesters from the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI), the country’s largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and the Islamic Unity Association sealed the synagogue during their anti-Israel and anti-US protest in the city on Jan. 7. They demanded the place of worship place be closed down.

“The sealing of the synagogue is just an emotional reaction to the Gaza conflict.                      

”Chairman of the Indonesian Ulemas Association in Surabaya, Abdussomad Buchori, insisted that his organization would continue fighting for the closure of the synagogue because it was against the Pancasila state ideology.

“Pancasila only recognizes five religions but that excludes Judaism. Besides, the Jewish country has committed bloodshed in Gaza,” he said, adding the synagogue had no official permit from the Surabaya administration.

The provincial religious affairs agency spokesman, Muhammad Nawawi, said the agency was considering barring the Jewish community from performing their religious activities in the city to avoid an impression that the government deployed double standards on the Palestine issue following the Israeli attacks.         

“The sealing of the synagogue is just an emotional reaction to the Gaza conflict. All nations, regardless of their religion and ethnicities, want world peace,” Kadaruslan said.

The Shayes’ as a family are widely known and respected in the Surabaya area. They are known to city officials and have never tried to promote Judaism or enforce it on their neighbors unwillingly, according to locals.

“But, after the area was turned into a business district, the Shayes  frequently spent more time at the synagogue because they no longer had as many neighbors.”

Rifka Shayes and her husband often stay with their daughter Hana Margareth in the southern part of the city, but Hana does not attend the synagogue with her mother because she is married to a Muslim.

A house next to the synagogue building is occupied by Sunarmi, her husband Sugeng and their 6-year-old daughter Fitri Ramalia. Sunarmi is the daughter of Yosef Aron and Karti, though Aron, also of a Jewish descent, died in the 1970s. Sunarmi and her family have lived in the house since 1978 solely to take care of the synagogue.

Following the Israel-Palestine war, the synagogue’s compound has been locked and those wanting to visit the building have been asked to make an appointment first.

Abdullah, a parking attendant near the synagogue, said the building had been locked and no visitors were allowed to enter since conflict erupted in the Middle East.

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