Camelia Pasandaran & Bre Nanginna – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called on the country's Muslims to forgo violence and emulate the wisdom and poise of Prophet Muhammad.
Speaking at an event to mark the prophet's birthday at Merdeka Square in Central Jakarta on Tuesday, Yudhoyono said Muhammad had successfully converted and led a widely diverse group of peoples.
"The prophet set an example that a pilgrimage or major change should be undertaken wisely and that all problems should be resolved peacefully and in a dignified way," the president said.
The call comes in the wake of a series of attacks by Muslim hard-liners against followers of Ahmadiyah, a minority Islamic sect, and Christian churches. Yudhoyono himself has been criticized by religious leaders in recent weeks for failing to take firm action against hard-line groups that advocate violence.
Yudhoyono said that by following Muhammad's example, "our lives as people and as a nation will be blessed by God, and everything that we aim for will succeed."
"Don't argue among yourselves or blame each other," he added. Merdeka Square was filled with thousands of people who knelt in mass prayer as part of the day's observance.
"With the support of all our peoples, we have achieved many things," the president told the crowd. "But there are many problems that need to be resolved; much needs to be done to ensure a better future."
On Monday, Yudhoyono made a similar call for peaceful conflict resolution, saying legal avenues should be sought to settle differences. "Sectarian or interreligious problems should be resolved in a right and peaceful way in accordance with the Constitution, laws and other regulations," he said.
"If the problem relates to religious norms, we should seek the right solution by listening to the advice of religious leaders."
Yudhoyono said Indonesians should strive to commit to the rule of law, democracy and diversity.
"We need to keep on learning and upholding decent and wise values and attitudes, respect and tolerate one another and live peacefully as a nation," he said. "We need to prevent violence as a way of solving problems."
During his sermon at Tuesday's mass prayer, Majelis Rasulullah leader Habib Munzir Bin Fuad Al Musawa also reminded Muslims of religious tolerance. He said people should live in harmony with those of different faiths, reminding them that the prophet and his companions did likewise.
Meanwhile, Central Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang said on Monday that his office had arrested a 25th suspect over the Feb. 8 attack on two churches and a Christian school in Temanggung district by a Muslim mob angered over the sentence handed down in a local blasphemy trial.
He said the latest suspect, identified as Muslih, 23, gave himself up to the police on Sunday night. "Right now, all the suspects are being interrogated extensively," Edward said.
Separately, National Police Chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said that Ujang bin Sahari, one of the three men in custody for the deadly Feb. 6 attack on an Ahmadiyah community in a village in Banten, which resulted in three deaths, had been determined as the ringleader.
"I believe that the conditions for further investigation and for taking the suspect to the court have been met," he said. He also said five other people had been named suspects but had not been detained pending further investigation.
Timur said Ujang was identified by witnesses and recorded on video, but added that no evidence yet indicated if any organization was behind his actions. There has been widespread speculation that Ujang is the regional head of the hard-line Islamic Defenders Front (FPI).
[Additional reporting from Antara.]