T

he government's decision to move Idul Fitri one day forward to Sunday from its original schedule of Sept. 21 and 22, allowed Indonesian Muslims to have one official extra day to celebrate the end of Ramadan.

The atmosphere throughout the archipelago was peaceful and merry, including in former conflict areas like in Maluku and Aceh. The general excitement was marred by a sea accident that claimed 13 lives in North Maluku.

The recent killing of the most-wanted terrorist in Indonesia, Malaysian citizen Noordin M. Top, apparently has also given the people more confidence in the National Police's capability (Polri) to provide security during the festivities.

On Tuesday, traffic in the Northern Coast of Java (Pantura) and on toll roads in West Java indicated that many vacationers had even returned home.

In Ambon, until Tuesday, people were still seen visiting their neighbors, relatives and friends. In Batu Merah and Waihong, where the majority of residents are Muslims, many Christians visited Muslims. At Christmas, similar scenes are also common, when Muslims visit their Christian compatriots. The province was torn by sectarian conflicts from 1999 to 2001, which claimed thousands of lives.

"Since 2005, the tradition of visiting each other during Idul Fitri and Christmas has become a common practice again," a resident of Ambon told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

The former war-torn Aceh was also largely peaceful. Banda Aceh was relatively quiet, as many people celebrated Idul Fitri with their relatives in their kampungs. There were no reports of major traffic accidents in the province that has just introduced the stoning bylaw.

"Until last year, there were still many people working on post-tsunami projects and their presence helped to boost the local economy," a Banda Aceh resident said.

In North Maluku province, a sea accident disturbed the country's relatively peaceful and cheerful atmosphere. On Monday evening, a boat capsized after being hit by high waves while traveling from Buli in East Halmahera to Maba in Central Halmahera. A local port official said 13 were killed and 3 were still missing after the accident. Sixteen passengers were unharmed. The bodies of the dead victims have been returned home.

"It is true that a boat sank in East Halmahera waters on Mon-day evening," Muhammad Sakti told Antara state news agency on Tuesday.

Local tourists flocked to Bali during the public holidays. On Monday alone, there were 112 domestic flights, including 57 incoming and four extra flights, transporting 8,544 incoming passengers and 4,925 outgoing passengers.

"For 24 hours on Monday, there were four extra domestic and two international flights," said Wenten, an official of the Ngurah Rai International Airport on Tuesday.

On Wednesday, there were severe traffic jams in Bandung, West Java, as visitors, mostly from Jakarta, flocked to the city. Factory outlets, restaurants on Jl. Setia Budi and Jl. Raya Lembang were crowded with visitors.

Traffic was slow for about 10 kilometers along the Bandung and Lembang road.