Local authorities denied a Protestant church’s building permit application in Cilegon city, Indonesia this week. Christian leaders in the area condemned this saying as it goes against the Indonesian government’s professed desire for interreligious tolerance and religious freedom.
According to a statement released on 9 September by the Communion of Churches in Indonesia (PGI), “This incident harms the 1945 Constitution, which guarantees equality of every citizen to adhere to a certain religion and to worship freely in accordance to their own religions.”
A group of Muslims calling themselves the Committee of Local Wisdom Savior in Cilegon, opposed the construction of the church on 7 September. They met with the mayor of Cilegon, Helldy Agustian, in his office and pressured him to refuse the building permit. A video of this incident went viral on social media.