Yuli Tri Suwarni, Depok – After cooling off for a month, protest against construction of a grand mosque by the Indonesian Islam Propagation Institute (LDII) mounted when gangs of youths from various parts of town took to the streets demanding the administration stop the project in Beji subdistrict.
Head of the RW 2 neighborhood in Beiji, Ahmad Baharuiddin said protest was being stepped up with banners in strategic locations. The residents' opposition has won support from the religious affairs agency in the municipal administration.
Ahmad's group has filed a petition, supported by at least 50 residents, asking the Beji village head to ban the LDII community from constructing the mosque. LDII is widely regarded as sectarian, and its teaching is different from the Islamic mainstream as proselytized by Nadhlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah.
The mosque was to be constructed on a plot of land belonging to a man known as Imam, a member of LDII, in the village.
"Pak Imam is a newcomer here and there are less than 20 LDII members here. Why do they not use the existing mosque to pray?" Ahmad said referring to the 2006 Joint Ministerial Decree requiring the support of at least 90 residents for the construction of a mosque, church or temple in any given area.
Kadar Solihat, of the local religious affairs agency, said his office has looked into the issue and the LDII members should not be allowed to set up their own mosque in the village because of their small numbers. He claimed his office was impartial in dealing with such sensitive issues.
The LDII is considered sectarian because, like the Ahmadiyah Islamic sect, LDII has a grand imam as its leader. The sect has been free from raids or opposition from vigilante groups because it is closely affiliated with the Golkar Party.
Meanwhile, chairman of the LDII in Depok Ratman Latief said they would go ahead with the construction despite the protest, because LDII members could not join prayers with other Muslims because its prayer schedule was more rigid than the mainstream.
"LDII has its prayer schedule and it will raise many problems if LDII dominates an existing mosque," he said, but declined to reveal the substantial reasons behind LDII's rejection of joining local Muslims to pray.