Vaudine England, Jakarta – Ramadan in Indonesia is a time for heightened tempers on the subject of sin, and this year it could mean a month of unemployment for everyone in the entertainment industry.

The Front to Defend Islam and other groups have been protesting daily in the run-up to the Islamic fasting month, demanding that all bars, nightclubs and even restaurants close, especially those lending themselves to gambling or prostitution.

Last year Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso promised that nightlife could carry on, only to buckle to the mob when it held his office hostage with demonstrations. This year, he said some businesses would be allowed to stay open.

Critics say cash payments and the turf war between soldiers, police and gangs will have more to do with choosing which businesses can open than interpretation of Islamic tenets.

They point out that many protests organised by the Front to Protect Islam are funded by shadowy military figures, and that several of the Front's leaders have themselves been known to be drunk and disorderly at times.

The opening up of democratic space since the 1998 fall of Suharto made room for sharper Islamic political discourse, ranging from demonstrations by machete-wielding protesters outside Parliament every day last week to the trashing of bars and restaurants and the beating up of patrons.

During an Islamist "anti-sin" demonstration at the weekend, 48 groups joined a convoy around the streets of Solo, Central Java, demanding that all activities offensive to Muslims cease during Ramadan. Members of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, which is headed by Vice-President Megawati Sukarnoputri, were among the protesters.