I

n the latest act of intolerance that further undermines the country’s effort to present itself as beacon of democracy for the Islamic world, a group of radical Muslims in Bekasi, West Java, prevented a Christian congregation from holding a service by hurling urine, sewage and frogs at them, a parishioner said.

The Congregation of Batak Protestant Churches (HKBP) Filadelfia was forced to halt its service commemorating the ascension of Jesus Christ at their half-built church in Tambun, Bekasi, after being harassed by a group of people who oppose the church’s construction.

Filadelfia congregation leader Rev. Palti Panjaitan said the protesters blocked access to the church building, located in Jejalen Raya village, at 8:30 a.m. when the congregation was about to enter the church and start the service. “We [the congregation and the people] were only separated by a barricade of police officers who managed to protect us when the groups tried so hard to break through the barricade.

“They threw urine, sewage and frogs at us — all of which also struck the policemen,” he said.

The group of people, who according to Palti, did not carry any flags or symbols that would identify them, also yelled at the churchgoers using a loudspeaker, Palti said.

The parishioners managed to pray for only about five minutes and were not able to conduct other liturgies, he said. “We tried to negotiate with all parties, including that group and representatives of the local administration. We were told to abandon the service,” he said. “We finally gave in at 10 a.m.”

Palti said that church representatives were considering filing a police report concerning the incident. “We want the mastermind arrested,” he said.

Tambun Police chief Comr. Andri Ananta, however, denied that any harassment took place. “There was a demonstration; protesters who prevented them from holding the service at the site, but we managed to control everything. Nobody threw anything and there was no clash,” he said.

A total of 402 police officers, military personnel and local public order officers were deployed to secure the service, he said.

“We set up a barricade and had closed the road since 8:30 a.m. Everything has returned normal as of 10:30 a.m.,” Andri said.

One of the protesters, Naimun, 78, said that the Jejalen residents protested as they usually did, but more people came to the site during Thursday’s service. “There were many people in the demonstration and we could not control what happened,” he said.

Naimun also suspected that the parishioners were not Jejalen Jaya residents and suspected the church brought in people from other places.

He said that protesters would keep going to the site whenever a service was to be held until the congregation agreed to move to another place provided by the Bekasi administration. “We will keep rejecting the church’s construction in our village,” he said,

Recently, an activist from the Association of Journalists for Diversity (Sejuk), Tantowi Anwari, was stripped and beaten by dozens of members of the Islam Defenders Front (FPI) when he supported the Filadelfia congregation’s right to hold services.

The Bekasi regency sealed off the site in 2010 after local residents objected to the construction of the church. The Bandung State Administrative Court ruled in favor of HKBP Filadelfia, but the administration has yet to reopen the site.

The intimidation against the Filadelfia congregation intensified as the government failed to overcome a standoff over the Indonesian Christian Church Yasmin in Bogor.

The latest solution offered was to build a mosque adjacent to the church, but Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto has rejected the idea.

The incident in Bekasi came in the wake of a series of incidents that critics say have put Indonesia’s commitment to freedom of expression into question. Recently, a Canadian author was banned from speaking at a seminar as she was accused of promoting homosexuality.

In another example of the growing clout of the country’s Muslim conservatives, the Jakarta Police have refused to endorse American singer Lady Gaga’s concert in June following strong opposition by the FPI. (cor)