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Holocaust exhibition draws Muslim groups’ ire
Fringe Muslim groups have aired their grievances over a photo exhibition honoring Holocaust victims in North Sulawesi, alleging that it could be used as a way to endorse diplomatic relations with Israel.
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In this screenshot taken from a video posted on her official Twitter account on Jan. 27, 2022, German Ambassador to Indonesia Ina Lepel (right) delivers remarks to open Indonesia's only Holocaust Museum in Minahasa, North Sulawesi. The museum has drawn the ire of Indonesian Muslim groups. (Twitter/via @GermanAmbJak)
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he opening of a photo exhibition honoring Holocaust victims in Minahasa, North Sulawesi, last week has faced protests from Islamic organizations – including the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and major Islam-based political party the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) – who said it was counterproductive to the country's support of Palestine and was against the Indonesian constitution.
Sudarnoto Abdul Hakim, MUI deputy chairman for foreign affairs, urged the Minahasa regency administration and the local Jewish community to shut down the exhibition.
He said he was concerned the exhibition would be used as a way to endorse diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Israel.
He said Indonesia, as one of the countries that recognized Palestine as a state, was committed to carrying out its constitutional duty to eradicate colonialism by standing with the Palestinian people against Israel’s colonization.
Sudarnoto went on to say that the exhibition’s depiction of Jews as victims during the Holocaust was in contrast to the current situation, where Israel, the Jewish nation-state, committed extraordinary crimes against Palestinians.
“Indonesia is known to be at the forefront of defending Palestinian rights. Why is there this [exhibition] all of a sudden? I think it can hurt Palestinians,” he told The Jakarta Post.
The photo exhibition, which the organizers have dubbed as the first Holocaust museum in Southeast Asia, is being held at Sha’ar Hashamayim Synagogue in Tondano, Minahasa. It is the only remaining synagogue providing a service in Indonesia after another synagogue in Surabaya, East Java, was demolished in 2013.
