In the name of Ramadhan, city administrations across the country have started to impose restrictions on operating hours of entertainment centers and food and beverage businesses to protect the sanctity of the fasting month.

Gorontalo city administration has announced its latest ruling on nightclub operational hours during Ramadhan. According to the regulation, pubs and karaoke spots should remain completely closed.

'€œRestaurants are allowed to open from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m.,'€ said acting Gorontalo Deputy Mayor Weni Liputo on Wednesday. Any violations, she said, would be met with firm punishments.

'€œIf they violate the regulation, we will warn them first. But if they continue doing it, we will close their business and possibly withdraw their permits,'€ she continued, adding that the administration would also keep an eye on beauty salons that reportedly also operated as sex salons.

The Surakarta administration in Central Java has also announced a similar regulation. All nightclubs, bars, karaoke outlets and coffee shops must remain closed for the first and last week of Ramadhan. They are only allowed to open during the second and third week of Ramadhan with restricted hours.

According to Bambang Marsudi Budi Santoso of Surakarta'€™s public order division, discotheques and pubs were allowed to operate from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. while bars were allowed to open from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m.

Karaoke spots and coffee shops could operate from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. during the two middle weeks. Bambang also called on the owners of entertainment centers not to display liquor during Ramadhan.

Surakarta Culture and Tourism Agency head Widdy Srihanto added that the regulation did not apply to restaurants. However, he went on, restaurants were expected to hang temporary curtains to block activities inside from being seen during the day.

Some businesspeople had no objections about the special Ramadhan regulations, while some others expressed their disappointment.

Hendrik Korin, the owner of Brantas restaurant in Gorontalo, admitted that his daily income dramatically declined during Ramadhan due to the regulation.

On normal days, he makes a profit of Rp 1 million (US$100) to Rp 1.5 million, whereas during Ramadhan, he makes half that amount as the restaurant can only open for around two hours. He said he also found it difficult to pay his 30 employees during the month.

'€œThere was a time when we restaurant owners were still allowed to open the whole day. The administration only told us to install curtains to cover up activities inside the eatery. But now, the regulation has changed and we can do nothing about it,'€ he said.

In contrast to Hendrik, Retno Wulandari of the Sunan Hotel in Surakarta said she had no problem with the regulation. In fact, she went on, the hotel management had decided to close its discothèque during Ramadhan.

In Yogyakarta, owners of entertainment centers along Parangtritis Beach in Bantul regency said they would voluntarily close down their businesses during the first and last weeks of Ramadhan out of respect for the holy month.

For the two middle weeks, they would open from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., according to Rohadi, head of the Karaoke Owners Association at Parangtritis Beach.

Meanwhile, the Bantul administration has pledged to intensify raids during the fasting month. Bantul'€™s Public Order Agency head, Kandiawan, called on locals to report any disturbances caused by activities at entertainment centers.

During raids conducted from May 20 through end of June, Yogyakarta Police confiscated 3,027 liters of liquor and arrested a number of suspects who allegedly distributed the illegal beverages.

Slamet Susanto contributed to the story from Bantul

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