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Depok to submit 'religious city' draft bylaw for second time
Though the City Council had rejected an initial draft of the religious city (PKR) bylaw, Depok Mayor Mohammad Idris Abdul Somad said it was urgent for Depok to be given the designation.
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A mural on Jl. Ir. Juanda, Depok, West Java. (Kompas.com/Nurkhikmah Yuliastuti)
T
he Depok administration in West Java plans to repropose to the City Council a draft bylaw that would officially declare it a “religious city”.
Though the City Council had rejected an initial draft of the religious city (PKR) bylaw, Depok Mayor Mohammad Idris Abdul Somad said it was urgent for Depok to be given the designation.
“The term ‘religious’ does not necessarily mean sharia. [It’s part of] the Depok municipality’s vision: superior, comfortable, religious. All religions recognize the concept of being religious, there’s nothing wrong with it,” he said as quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com.
He went on to claim that the PKR draft bylaw would also strengthen family ties, hoping that it would help prevent teenage brawls in the area.
Idris conceded that there had been some mistakes in the draft bylaw that he missed, particularly in an article that regulates how residents must dress.
“I was in a rush to submit the draft. To be honest, I have not read it,” he said, claiming that it had been adapted from similar bylaw submitted by the Tasikmalaya administration, also in West Java.
Depok Council Speaker Hendrik Tangke explained why the council had rejected the draft.
