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ogor Mayor Bima Arya Sugiarto has insisted that the Cap Go Meh celebration in Bogor will still take place, despite resistance from the Bogor Muslim Forum (FMB). 

Cap Go Meh marks the 15th and final day of the traditional two-week celebration of Chinese New Year, called Imlek in Indonesia.

Bima said Cap Go Meh, which was celebrated as part of the Bogor Street Festival, was one of the most important events on the West Java city's tourism calendar.

“We think it is important to inform the public of the Bogor administration’s stance on this. It is an important point of togetherness and diversity,” Bima said on Tuesday, as quoted by kompas.com.

He said that the Bogor Street Festival was an important event that celebrated the city's cultural diversity. He added that the festival had always drawn the attendance of national figures, and that they did not experience a decline in their adherence to the Muslim faith from attending the festival.

“Do you think [former West Java governor] Ahmad Heryawan lost his Muslim faith after attending the festival each year? Do you think the President's faith disappeared when he attended a festival on Indonesia's cultural diversity?" said Bima. "The Bogor Street Festival has also been attended by the tourism minister, the religious affairs minister, and many other important figures.”

The Bogor Muslim Forum recently distributed a circular saying that it rejected all events the Bogor administration held to mark Chinese New Year and Cap Go Meh this year. The circular also calls on the Bogor administration to "stop ordering" Muslim civil servants to attend or to support the Cap Go Meh celebration.

The Bogor chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) responded by calling upon members of the public not to heed the FMB's call, and instead called for tolerance among the city's Muslims. (gis)