It is shameful of the Jakarta city administration to issue a license for a bar serving alcohol in an elite residential area, even more so when it is named "Buddha Bar" which, of course, hurts the feelings of the Buddhist people.
Will the administration give permits for the establishments of an "Islam Bar" or a "Jesus or Christ Bar" or a "Krishna/Shiva Bar"?
The city administration needs advice from the Ministry of Religious Affairs or other institutions, as the best guides in these matters. Most of the comments from Western expatriates do not hold water here; neither are they Buddhist nor do they have any respect for religious sentiment in this country; nor do they understand the Indonesian concept of democracy and "freedom of expression".
Our forefathers taught us "equality and goodness for all".
Gulzar
Jakarta
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