Candra Malik, Jakarta – About 4,000 people have signed a petition demanding that the government do more to protect Constitution-enshrined religious freedoms in response to Sunday's brutal attack on two leaders of the Batak Christian Protestant Church (HKBP) in Bekasi.

The HKBP, which had its church sealed after Bekasi authorities capitulated to demands by hard-line Islamic groups to close it, was the target of a similar attack in August.

The five-point petition has been posted online. Leila S. Chudori, a senior editor at Tempo magazine and one of the architects of the petition, said a printed version would be sent to the president soon.

"Sunday's attack is what encouraged us to draw up this petition to invite Indonesians to stem the spread of violence," she told the Jakarta Globe, adding that the latest attack was part of a worrying trend, citing a report that the Setara Institute think tank had recorded 28 cases of rights violations against Christian groups in Indonesia between January and July.

The first of the petition's five demands is for state protection for people's right to worship.

The second is for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to make good on his campaign promises on this issue, while the third is for follow-up action on the police's Aug. 30 report on hard-line groups that perpetrate religious violence.

The last two demands are for the perpetrators to be brought to justice, and for Yudhoyono to focus on the domestic problem of religious conflict rather than on similar issues abroad.