DEMOCRAT PARTY CHIEF URGES IMMEDIATE PROBE INTO ATTACK ON CHURCH-GOERS

Jakarta, Sept 13 (ANTARA) - The chairman of the ruling Democrat Party, Anas Urbaningrum, called on the police to immediately investigate Sunday's attack on church-goers in Bekasi, West Java.

In a statement to ANTARA here on Monday, Anas said members of any religious community should be free to hold their worship services free of intimidation or obstruction by others.

"Therefore, we urge the police to immediately conduct a thorough investigation into the stabbing of a leader of the Batak Christian Protestant Church (HKBP) in Pondok Timur, Bekasi, on Sunday (Sept 12)," he said.

Such violent incidents should not have been allowed to happen as it could disrupt the harmonious life of the heterogenous Indonesian nation.

"Immediately arrest them and bring them to justice. We must not allow the incident to become a precedent," he said.

He said if the case was ignored it could disrupt the harmonious relationship among different religious followers in the country.

"Freedom of worship and freedom to practice one's religion is fundamental and guaranteed by the constitution," he said.

Therefore, he said, nobody is allowed to make followers of any religion feel intimidated, much less subject them to acts of violence.

"The stance of the Democrat Party is clear and firm : the perpetrators (of Sunday's incident) must be immediately arrested and brought to justice, given severe sanction. Once again, this case must not be allowed to happen again as it could destroy inter-religious harmony in Indonesia," Anas said.