Several roads will be closed in the vicinity of Jakarta's National Monument on Thursday afternoon because of a planned gathering organized by Islamic groups.
everal roads will be closed in the vicinity of the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta on Thursday afternoon because of a planned Islamist gathering dubbed 212 Munajat Night.
“The plan is to close and divert [traffic on] several routes starting at 3 p.m., because masses of participants will move to Monas after the [afternoon prayer],” acting Jakarta Transportation Agency head Sigit Wijatmoko said on Thursday.
Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara, Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat, Jl. Majapahit, Jl. Veteran, Jl. Veteran I, Jl. Veteran II and Jl. Veteran III would be affected by the closure, Sigit said, adding that a total of 133 agency and police personnel would be deployed to 22 spots.
The gathering is organized by the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) in cooperation with the Dakwah Front Institution and expected to draw participants from Greater Jakarta and beyond.
The event will include a tabligh akbar (mass prayer event), shalawat (recitation), and zikir (religious chanting). It is slated to begin at 6 p.m. and end at 11 p.m.
Police had yet to receive information regarding the number of participants joining the event, Central Jakarta Police chief Sr. Comr. Harry Kurniawan said.
For the sake of smooth traffic, he recommended that people wanting to pray together do so in their respective districts or regencies instead of coming to Central Jakarta.
"Because tomorrow is a working day, roads across the city will remain crowded," he said, tribunnews.com reported. (sau)
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