Is Indonesia headed for another round of deadly sectarian violence? Following the suicide bomb attack in Solo which has so far claimed two lives and injured more than 20 worshippers in a church, the country’s political elite has a lot of questions to answer, and we need a firm and determined response from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
The Solo suicide attack comes on the heels of a violent clash in Ambon a few weeks ago and police have stated that there could be a link. Human right activists and a priest have warned that a campaign to exacerbate inter-religious tension between Christians and Muslims could be under way. If this is indeed true, the nation is headed down a very dangerous path.
The continued violence targeted at churches and other minority groups is not random. The security apparatus has been working hard to arrest terrorists and disband cells within the country but as the Solo attack vividly illustrates, there is no shortage of young people willing to take up the jihadist cause.
Categories: Indonesia
I entirely agree with the writer. A ZERO TOLERANCE policy against religious fanaticism is the only way out of this senseless behaviour of some senseless people. They are dividing the Islamic people and getting a very bad name to real Islam.