Issue: Deciphering the Prophet’s secret society

June 18, p10

Over the past two years, Jakarta has seen an invasion of sermon groups led by clerics claiming to be the descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, with loyal followers ranging from teenagers to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Habib sermon groups are their usual name and they have a distinctive feature that sets them apart: They block roads to accommodate their audiences at the expense of motorists caught in traffic congestion that usually lasts for more than four hours.

The leaders of these groups usually don Yemeni-style clothes and turbans, and attendees invariably come in big groups by motorcycle or bus, carrying flags depicting the name of their sermon group in Arabic.

Your comments:

“They block roads to accommodate their audiences at the expense of motorists.”

Interestingly, nobody makes a fuss about it, but the exact same reason was given by radicals in Bogor to close the church, and if somebody dares to protest in Europe about roads blocked by people while praying, then the host nation is dubbed “Islamophobic”.
Edo E

Edo, Indonesia is a majority Muslim state. So if Muslims want to worship in public, get over it.

For the record, a lot more than a select few have “dared” to protest against Muslims (or as you like to call them “Islamists”) praying in Europe.
Omar Abdo

They are not admitted as Habib, but we recognize them as Habib with a clear lineage and they always teach us to love God and the Prophet, while your article contains an unwise statement from the minority who are just looking for the faults of other Muslims who disagree, only to vilify without giving a solution.

Of all those present, not all of them are good people but they want to be by attending lectures. If we are wise, we should not demonize them but provide solutions and help them so that all activities run smoothly without harming others, because it is not easy to arrange the attendance of tens of thousands of people at an event.

I think anyone would be overwhelmed. If their intentions are good then they need support. If they are making mistakes, then help them technically. Do not talk negative without having a solution.
Ahmad Wesil