Dozens of young people from various religious backgrounds toured several places of worship in the capital on Saturday as part of an event to promote religious tolerance.

The interfaith tour was sponsored by the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP) in light of renewed attacks on churches and Islamic minority group Jamaah Ahmadiyah by Muslim radicals.

The students visited three religious places -- Santa Maria Cathedral, Istiqlal Mosque and Indonesian Christian Church Kwitang (GKI) -- in Central Jakarta.

The participants, including several Ahmadiyah followers, said the event gave them a chance to bond with people from different religions.

Ahmadiyah participant Firdaus Mubarik, 24, said he was excited to visit Santa Maria Cathedral in Lapangan Banteng, Central Jakarta.

"This is my first time visiting the church. I really enjoyed joining the tour. I now know more about how Catholics pray.

"For me the tour is not only about visiting places of worship, but rather it's about building friendships with people from other religions," he told The Jakarta Post during the tour.

"Such a tour gives youths like me a chance to bond with other young people and to learn how to respect cultural and religious diversity. It has also increased my circle of friends and broadened my network," he added.

Firdaus said there were no restrictions in Islam on visiting or entering other religions' places of worship.

"It's just a visit. There's nothing wrong with it. Visiting other houses of worship is a great way to raise religious tolerance," he said.

Another participant, Agustinus Hutagaol of the Protestant Batak Christian District (HKBP), shared a similar opinion.

"It's a good way to promote religious tolerance. This event also can prevent any misunderstanding among religious groups," said Agustinus, 25.

The event is part of ICRP's program called Peace in Diversity, and one of a series of tours conducted by the civil society organization in partnership with the Church World Service (CWS).

The ICRP will also hold a similar tour on June 28 to Aditya Jaya Temple in Rawamangun, East Jakarta, Gudwara Sikh Temple in Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta and Kongcu bio Temple in Tangerang, Banten.

On July 5, the interfaith forum will take another youth group to the Central Buddhist Monastery Mahavira Graha in Ancol, North Jakarta.

Tour project officer Franky Tampubolon said the event is aimed at promoting peace and religious tolerance among young people.

"We are really concerned about the increase in religious violence, which is mainly caused by a lack of information. It's just a misunderstanding. The violence would not have occurred if everybody had adequate information about every religion," he said.

"We took Jakarta high school students on the same tour in 2005. We concentrate on youngsters because they will play a big role in developing this country's future.

"We hope this program will increase their knowledge of other religions. We also hope this tour will become a yearly event," he said.

Abdul Majid, a 25-year old participant from the Nahdlatul Ulama Students Organization (IPNU), called on ICRP to continue running the pluralist program.

"Other organizations should also have tour activities like this. People need information about other religions, so they can help to promote religious tolerance and understanding," he said. (trw)

— JP