Seemingly some Muslims feel to embarrassed to be the only one vandalizing and burning Christian Churches in Indonesia, and hence have to invent some stories to "balance" this:

From Wiseman <wiseman@facts.com>
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Mosques Are Burnt Again In East Timor
Date: Mon Feb 10 23:44:28 EST 1997
Organization: None
Message-Id: <5dotfc$alp@usenet.srv.cis.pitt.edu>

Though 21 Mosques which are burnt in September riot in 1995 is not 
fixed yet, because of East Timor Governor Abilio Soares and Human Rights 
Nobel Prize winner Bishop Belo forbid the reconstruction, more mosques 
are burnt again in East Timor.
   On July 1996, several mosques and religion school are burnt. On the 
next month, one mosque is burnt in Baucau, and on Chrismast 1996, mosque 
Al Istiqamah is burnt in Kaiwati Village, Viqueque. An East Timor Muslim 
delegation report that to Muslim leader in Jakarta.
   After the mosque burning, 70 East Timor Muslim flee to Base Camp Ossu 
(a military camp). They do not dare to come out, because the 
fundamentalist Catholics are searching treespasser's ID and torture them 
if they are not Catholics.
   If in Situbondo and Tasikmalaya riot, the Christians can rebuild their 
churches immediately. The East Timor Muslim do not have that privilege. 
They are not only forbid to rebuild their mosques, but also not allowed 
to pray in the ruin of the mosques. It is obvious that East Timor 
Catholics do not have a religious tolerance for other religions and lack 
of humanity. Perhaps Inquisition has become their way of life. They will 
do anything to force other people to convert to Catholics.
   Many East Muslim employees have to move out from East Timor or convert 
their religion to Catholic for their safety.
   Is there anybody who will save East Timor Muslims from New Inquisition 
and Dark Ages in East Timor?

(quote from Media Dakwah Magazine February 1997)

Since this sounded too ludicrous to be true I took the liberty to ask some Indonesian friends about it. Here the reply of one of them, he did and I sent it to the newsgroup as well:

From Jochen Katz <jkatz@math.gatech.edu>
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Re: Mosques Are Burnt Again In East Timor
Date: Tue Feb 11 22:58:04 EST 1997
Message-Id: <5drf4c$kvc@usenet.srv.cis.pitt.edu>

Please find below some real info from an informed Indonesian friend.

Best regards,

Jochen Katz


As an Indonesian christian, I dare to testify that the below report quoted from the Media Dakwah Magazine is absolutely NON-SENSE. Let me comment every statement of this fabricated report :

In article <5dotfc$alp@usenet.srv.cis.pitt.edu>, Wiseman writes:

> Though 21 Mosques which are burnt in September riot in 1995 is not
> fixed yet, because of East Timor Governor Abilio Soares and Human Rights
> Nobel Prize winner Bishop Belo forbid the reconstruction, more mosques
> are burnt again in East Timor.

The September 1995 riot in Dilli, East Timor was instigated primarily by the social and economic disatisfaction of the young East Timorese against the central government. The religious content of the riot in East Timor was sparked by religious slur against Catholicism initiated by a muslim person. As a result this religious slur sparked the long-lasting frustrated East Timorese people to a big riot causing the burning of three mosques (not 21 as claimed by the Media Dakwah magazine), one Pentecostal Church - (Assembly of God Church) and a market place in the city of Dilli. So not only mosques were being burnt but also a Pentecostal Church. I personally disagree with any violent movement used to attack any religious facilities.

The Nobel Prize Winner-Bishop Bello tried hard to calm down the emotion of the young East Timorese. Christ never teach people to be violent, and therefore, violence is not the way to solve the problem of East Timor, he asserted. Never did Bishop Bello, nor the East Timor Governor forbid the rebuilding process of those three mosques. It is not true that more mosques were burnt after the 1995 Dilli incident. This fake report is made to divert the real issue of East Timor where economic, social and cultural issues were diverted into religious issue as the main cause.

> On July 1996, several mosques and religion school are burnt. On the
> next month, one mosque is burnt in Baucau, and on Chrismast 1996, mosque
> Al Istiqamah is burnt in Kaiwati Village, Viqueque. An East Timor Muslim
> delegation report that to Muslim leader in Jakarta.
> After the mosque burning, 70 East Timor Muslim flee to Base Camp Ossu
> (a military camp). They do not dare to come out, because the
> fundamentalist Catholics are searching treespasser's ID and torture them
> if they are not Catholics.

There were no single incident of mosques vandalism, let alone religious schools burnt after the last Sept 1995 riot. No mosque was burnt in Baucau in July nor during Christmas season. It is precisely the other way around where 10 churches were burnt in Surabaya by the muslim mob exactly on the black Sunday of June 10, 1996 when christians were still at their worship services. Three months later, in October 1996 the big church attacks took place in Situbondo resulting the burning of of 23 churches and several christian schools and five people (the pastor and his family members) died inside the building.

Not long enough to forget this barbaric incident, anti-christian riot took place in Tasikmalaya exactly when christians were still celebrating their second christmas day. As usual churhces and christian school were attacked by the irresponsible muslims. In January 1997 exactly during the month of Ramadhan another church vandalism took place in Rengasdengklok, 60 km from Jakarta. There were still many church attacks in other areas in the last five years that were not reported by the mass media due to the so called faked political stability in the country.

For details of other church persecutions please check the web site of fica-net under the title "Christian persecution in Indonesia". I found it hard to believe how this report dare to divert the long lasting church vandalism during 1996 and replace it with the fabricated issues of mosque vandalism.

> If in Situbondo and Tasikmalaya riot, the Christians can rebuild their
> churches immediately. The East Timor Muslim do not have that privilege.
> They are not only forbid to rebuild their mosques, but also not allowed
> to pray in the ruin of the mosques.

The above statement is a fabrication of the anti-christian movement using the media to divert the true situation. Though the government committed to partially support the rebuilding process of the attacked churches in Situbondo and Tasikmalaya, most of the financial burden must be borne by the churches themselves. In reality, not all victimized churches are allowed to be rebuilt. Again by using fabricated reasons some of these churches may not be rebuilt because they never obtain licensing certificate to build a church from the authorities. The other way around happen where the three attacked mosques in Dilli obtained instantaneous financial support from the central government to rebuilt their religious facilities again. There are no strong indication at all that mosques are prohibited to be built in the christian areas. It is exactly the other way around that christians have no privilege to build their churches even in the mixed cultural society (big cities), let alone in the muslims areas. Often times christians have to face unfairly treatment in obtaining consent from the authorities (ministry of religious affairs) to build their churches regardless the growing number of their congregation.

> It is obvious that East Timor
> Catholics do not have a religious tolerance for other religions and lack
> of humanity. Perhaps Inquisition has become their way of life. They will
> do anything to force other people to convert to Catholics.
> Many East Muslim employees have to move out from East Timor or convert
> their religion to Catholic for their safety.

It is exactly the other way around that most fanatic muslims have no religious tolerance. If you read the newspaper on the Ramadhan preaching at many big mosques in the central government, you will notice the messages from official leaders were stressed to encourage all muslims to be tolerance and to accept the existence of non-muslims in multi cultural society. The President State Address in big Islamic Events were focused on the issue of religious tolerance in order to maintain the unity of Indonesia. All high ranking officers also called muslims as a majority to practice religious tolerance towards non-muslim.

There are no evidence that the Timorese would enforce muslims to change their belief. It is the other way around many poor East Timorese were adopted by muslim parents ("sistem bapak angkat" or "adoption and indirect parenting system") from Java and changed their religion from Catholicsm to Islam.

> Is there anybody who will save East Timor Muslims from New Inquisition
> and Dark Ages in East Timor?
> > (quote from Media Dakwah Magazine February 1997)

The Media Dakwah Magazine is a bias media which is always used as a means to provoke religious intolerance against christians. This magazine is well known by christians as a dangerous media trying to provoke the muslims to be always suspicious against christians. It contains a lot of fabricated issues. Only well informed and objective muslims would be able to clearly see the "objectivity and the truth" of such articles.

Regards,

" .... "

Sorry, I have to stay anonymous. But that is a consequence of our reality.


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