Hans David Tampubolon, Jakarta – A survey published Monday has confirmed a widely held assumption that religious intolerance is rising in the Greater Jakarta region.

The survey, conducted by human rights watchdog Setara Institute from Oct. 20 to Nov. 10, found that close to 50 percent of the respondents thought it was unacceptable for houses of worship of other religions to be constructed in their neighborhood.

"This public opinion survey found that 49.5 percent of respondents in the whole Greater Jakarta area refused to have places of worship of other religions built in their neighborhood. There is potential for the outbreak of tensions between people of different faiths," Benny Susetyo of the Setara Institute said in a press conference.

In the survey, Setara Institute interviewed 1,200 respondents in Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi. The survey's margin of error was said to be 2.2 percent.

Individual regions showed far higher levels of intolerance. The survey found Bekasi to be the least tolerant region, with 74 percent of the respondents rejecting construction of places of worship of other religions.

In recent months, Bekasi has seen a number of clashes between religious groups, including one between local Muslims and a Christian foundation accused of proselytization.

Earlier this year, a local group called the Islamic Community Forum demanded the removal of a statue that it deemed symbolic of the Holy Trinity. The statue was designed by a Balinese sculptor.

Central Jakarta also registered a high level of intolerance with 68 percent of respondents declining to have minorities build places of worship in their neighborhood. The figures for Depok and Tangerang were 66 percent and 62 percent.

However, when asked about the roots of terrorism, 42 percent of the respondents said it was the result of both economic and political injustice. "Bombers are the results of accumulating social frustration," Benny said, quoting respondents.

Last week, the International Crisis Group (ICG) issued a similar report, warning the government of mob rule and religious intolerance in response to its findings, which indicated a general fear among Muslims of Christian proselytizing. A lack of proactive measures by the government has led to stagnation in promoting religious tolerance, the ICG said.

The ICG senior adviser Sidney Jones said the government at both the national and local levels needs to push efforts to promote respect for other religions.

The Setara survey also found that the majority of the respondents had problems accepting religious beliefs other than the six faiths recognized by the government – Islam, Protestantism, Catholicism, Hinduism, Budhism and Taoism.

Sixty-one percent of the respondents said "legitimate" religions were those recognized by the government. Some 29.8 percent of the respondents said all religions in the world should have equal status. The survey also showed that 40.3 percent of the respondents deemed Ahmadiyah heretical and 28.7 percent acknowledged the rights of Ahmadiyah subscribers to perform their religious rituals.

Setara Institute chairman Hendardi said the government should try to curb intolerance by adopting more religions as legitimate in the country. "In any modern constitution-based nation, there is no limitation whatsoever on what religions the citizens can subscribe to. I believe that as long as a belief does not violate other people's rights and freedom, then such a belief can be recognized as a religion," he said.