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ov. 20, p. 6

It has been years of agony for GKI Taman Yasmin Protestant church congregation members as Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto has defied a Supreme Court decision to allow them to attend Sunday mass in their place of worship.

Budiarto’s bureaucratic move reflects the failure of not only law enforcement in the city, but also of the country’s civil justice system.

A number of civil society groups under the Bhineka Tunggal Ika Forum, which also includes Muhammadiyah Student Association and Nahdlatul Ulama’s Indonesian Islamic Student Association, have tried to resolve the issue to no avail.

The Asian chapter of Human Rights Watch and the World Church Conference have also stepped in, but their efforts did not work either.

Indeed, the Bogor case reflects the irony of Indonesian religious tolerance, which has been dubbed a global model for interfaith relations.

In an international discussion at the Islamic Studies Program at the Graduate Theological Union Berkeley, Marriane Farrina, a professor in Christian-Muslim dialogue, ranked Indonesia among the most preferable sites of peaceful relations among religions. (By Izak Lattu, Berkeley)

Your comments:

All religions teach us to aim for a better life in any way possible and lead us to tolerate, and give to, others.

In Islam, it is clear that our lovely Prophet said “lakum di nukum waliyadin” (my religion is my religion and yours is yours).

Tolerance is only seen in a written context but in reality it doesn’t happen because of our personal perceptions that tend to focus on personal interests.

We must forget our ego, power, politics or any kind of personal interests when we talk about religions.

May Allah bless us.

Ardiyanos

Whatever way you look at it, any government official who refuses to obey a Supreme Court order should have been fired and be in prison.

Why bother having the court if anyone can just defy it?

Sheldon

Prior to 1980 our country was the most peaceful place.

In December 1979 the CIA started a war with Russia via Afghanistan and Pakistan.

All Islamic extremists and Taliban are the products of the CIA, Saudi Arabia and their vassals.

Islam has been manipulated by Western countries. Our corrupt military dictators worked closely with them. Now we, the people, are suffering. Read this book on Pakistan by Anantol Lieven, Pakistan — A Hard Country (2011).

Yasmeen K.

Pakistan

Yasmeen, whether pure fiction or a mix of fact and fiction, the book you quote, a single tome, could never offer the once-and-for-all truth you claim it represents.

Does that sound familiar?

There are other sides to the story that would not suit you to read or quote, so please refrain from simplistic comments you mistakenly believe refute history.

Maurice G.