R-E-S-P-E-C-T – That’s How Ramadhan Must Be, Mr. UK Ambassador!

Fascinated by the comments of Her Britannic Majesty’s Ambassador to Indonesia this week …

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In his first year celebrating the annual Muslim celebration of Idul Fitri in Indonesia, British Ambassador to Indonesia Moazzam Malik says he feels the traditions of joy for Muslims are not that different from those observed in his native UK.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/07/07/idul-fitri-tradition-in-ri-comparable-to-uk-envoy.html

As I prepare to go into town this beautiful Jakarta morning, I am looking forward to seeing the trappings of intolerance gone from fancy restos and humble eateries alike. 

I refer of course to those offensive curtains erected in their windows, to which I made reference very recently.

Big Mackistan? Ramadhan Lock-Out at McD Sarinah? 

 

Lukman

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Those who do not fast must respect those who fast and vice versa, Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said…  http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/06/13/tolerance-and-mutual-respect-a-must-during-ramadhan-religious-affairs-minister.html

Lukman is of course correct,  echoing a similar sentiment I’ve often quoted, the words of the late President Gus Dur.

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‘If we fasting Muslims want respect, let us also respect those who aren’t fasting.’

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If somebody wants to go from pre-dawn to dusk without eating and drinking, and manages to do so, I respect his or her tenacity, and would not seek to interfere in such acts of self-denial.

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Equally, anyone, of any faith, who wishes to eat and/or drink during those hours should feel free to do so, unmolested by either IslamoNazi thugs like the FPI…

IslamoNazi Thugs Amok, Jakarta Cops Say ‘No Charges!’ 

… or by sectarian fanatics like those benighted local government regulators up there in darkest Serang, in Banten Province.   Bigot Goon-Squad Bullies Vendor – Decent Indonesians Open Hearts AND Wallets!

Lukman again – “During Ramadhan, the holy month, we must reinforce and strengthen our tolerance, not only among the Ukhuwah Islamiyah [Islamic brotherhood], but also the Ukhuwah Wathaniyah [brotherhood of the nation],” he told journalists at the State Palace.

I like Lukman.

Even when I disagree with him, he is such a refreshing improvement on his predecessor, Suryadharma Ali, a politician so beyond the ken of normal folk…

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White-shirt fuhrer Rizieq with Ali.

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…..that he was prepared to accept awards from those afore-mentioned IslamoNazis.  Good Indonesians Denounce ArchBigot Ali’s Latest Intolerant Outburst

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But it would be good if Lukman tried to be a little more pro-active. He could take a giant leap for fair play, tell his government colleagues to give up on kill-joy diktats which target those not abstaining from fun…

Ramadhan Begins! Sectarian Reminders Issued! 

 But even a small step would be progress of sorts, a ministerial exhortation to all the warungs, wartegs, restos and all eateries in Jakarta to remove those ridiculous pieces of cloth draped across their windows during Ramadhan.

They have two disadvantages.

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• First, you can’t watch girls go by if you are sitting within.

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Second, and arguably more compelling, the silly little sheets are a condescending insult to every fasting Muslim who passes the place.

Those draped windows mock their tenacity and suggest their commitment to self-denial is as flimsy as the cheap cotton of which the curtains are usually made.

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As if the sight or smell of sate kambing or nasi goreng would bring them to break their fast!

Rather they should welcome such temptations, which can demonstrate they’re above mundane distractions. 

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Back to Pak Malik. 

“There are a lot of Muslims in London, and even if we are not the majority, we observe traditions that are similar to those in Indonesia, such as pilgrimages to family graves, gathering with family for meals and silaturahmi,” Ambassador Malik said on Wednesday.

Yes, Your Excellency, those are nice traditions, worthy of respect, and yesterday I sent out quite a few SMSes wishing various friends ‘Selamat Idul Fitri,‘ the local equivalent of ‘Merry Christmas,’ with which, despite the ranting bigots’ manic antics…

IslamoNazi Christmas Warning – Don’t You Dare Disturb Us Bigots! 

…they greet me in December.

But there are other very different ‘traditions’ here, like sectarian sticky-beak raiding parties… 

Ramadan Raids In Righteous Indonesia – Oh Yeah? 

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…which are staged not only by the white-shirt hoods but by tax-funded civic militia and the constabulary, which need to be STAMPED OUT if Indonesia wants to show the world that it’s a better place to be than the shariah police states in the Middle East.  

It’s important that readers in Western nations should remember that their nations too face the intrusion of primitive intolerance.

We saw it in France this year…

IslamoNazi Intimidation…in Nice, France! 

 …and we’ve seen this vile phenomenon in London too, maybe not in Harrow, where Mr. Malik grew up, but most certainly in Tower Hamlets, and elsewhere in England.

Police ‘covered up’ violent campaign to turn London area ‘Islamic …

And what, may we ask, did Home Secretary Theresa May ever do about that?

Will Theresa May Countenance A Ban On Nobbly Knees? 

But then, she has some odd notions, hasn’t she?

IslamoNazi Thugs Amok, Jakarta Cops Say ‘No Charges!’

 

As Ramadhan draws to a close for another year, the Muslim Holy Month was marred by a gang of IslamoNazi trouble-makers amok in South Jakarta, cowardly louts invading a small cafe.

Exactly what happened next, however, is a matter of debate.

But one thing is clear. The police appeared on the scene, took the bad guys away, then turned them loose without charging them.

The first version in Rima News, accords with what we know of how the self-styled ‘Islam Defenders Front’stages a sweeping action against an entertainment venue ( ‘sweeping’ is the ridiculous euphemism for a fanatic vigilante raid here)

The target this past weekend was the Cafe Camden, on Jalan Gandaria in Kebayoran Baru, shortly before midnight on Saturday.

The thugs arrived mob-handed, on motorbikes.

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Crime scene, Cafe Camden

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Head of South Jakarta Police Commissioner Purwanta is quoted as saying that “according to witnesses the mob assaulted customers” and quantities of drink were grabbed and carried off.

So attacks on innocent people out for a pleasant evening (NB NOT violating the daylight fasting hours) and brazen theft. 

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Gutless masked IslamoNazis

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Exactly what everyone here expects of IslamoNazis, who run in packs like hyenas- – if they are on their own, they don’t tend to be make themselves as conspicuous as those masked goons above.

But then…

…. the sweeping action was thwarted by police officers from South Jakarta Metro Police, led by the South Jakarta Police Chief Pol Tubagus Hidayat. As a result, approximately 41 FPI members were taken to Mako South Jakarta Metro Police for data collection and identification of fingerprints by the team.

So they were locked up and held for trial?

Get a grip, mate, this is Jakarta!

…at approximately 2:20am, all the FPI had been sent home by the police…

How come this anti-social rabble were unleashed?

According to Tubagus, in a different news site, they were directed not to take vigilante action….the FPI members had wanted to do the sweeping, even coming into the bar, but had yet to engage in destruction….

“Nothing to it, just warnings....there were only a few bottles of beer spilled,” he said.  https://news.detik.com/berita/3247931/polisi-massa-fpi-yang-sweeping-bar-tak-ditahan-tapi-diberi-pengarahan 

Which is somewhat different from the assault and theft we read about elsewhere in the media!. 

But surely it should make no difference?

Damage was done, honest citizens terrorised, by sectarians who had no legal leg to stand on.

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• A good sound shariah-style flogging is the least these malignants deserve, and how about compensation to the bar for loss of custom, and to customers for distress caused? 
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•  Whatever, with Idul Fitri this week, most cafes and bars will be closed, but next week or next month, I’d urge local readers to drop by that Cafe Camden whenever you have time.
• Any place targetted by loathesome people surely deserves decent people’s support. 

 

IslamoNazi Christmas Warning – Don’t You Dare Disturb Us Bigots!

 A Jakarta Christmas scene

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After we reported the ‘Islam Defenders Front’ (FPI)’s abhorrence of decent Muslims who wish their Christian friends and neighbours a Merry Christmas, it seems the sectarian gangster group has warned that  celebrations of Christmas must not disturb other other faiths.

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Muchsin Alatas did not explain what he meant by Christmas disturbance. By coincidence, I’m typing this as the noise from the  local mosque echoes into my home, drowning out the tv news! 

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•  He also said FPI was at ease with certain groups who might raid Christmas attributes in the shopping centers – FPI would not interfere with the sweeping.

Sweeping is the sectarian gangster word for vicious vigilante raids, like that in the photo below. 

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– The FPI thugs are rotten, but fair- they are rotten to everyone!

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– that was taken in Makassar, the victims being decent Muslims at Ramadhan!

Certain groups is a fave expression here, weasel words from those who know exactly who they’re talking about but lack the candour to name them.

The report suggests a likely source of trouble, another bigot band called Jemaah Ansharusy Sharia, which aims to spread leaflets about the ban on use of Christmas  accessories by Muslims. In the leaflet, JAS forbids Muslims to help Christians who were preparing for Christmas.

What mean-spirited toe-rags!

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They also appealed to employers not to force Muslim employees to wear Christmas accessories.  http://www.harianindo.com/2014/12/19/34805/fpi-meminta-agar-perayaan-natal-tidak-menganggu-pemeluk-agama-lain/

Unfortunately, those many workers in shops and restos and bars here who don Santa gear do not usually go so far as that lass in the picture above. But neither do they look especially coerced, though some of the guys obliged to wear elf outfits do seem a tad self-conscious! 

As ever…

Muslim Leader of Largest Muslim Country – An Apostate? Ho-Ho-Ho! 

… I hasten to emphasise the truth – that a large majority of Indonesian Muslims have no problem with Christmas.

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I’ve heard it said that the practice of different creeds coming together to assist their respective            ” rivals’ ” decorations at Ramadhan and Christmas is no longer as routine a display of civility as once it was.

So the nasties do have more influence than once they did.

It remains to be seen if President Jokowi’s loud commitment to pluralism will turn that sorry tide.

West Java Christmas – Will Police Give Church The Gift of Freedom? 

If he shows leadership on the GKI Yasmin issue tomorrow, we can have higher hopes.