Church bombings in Indonesia decried

Christian Century, Jan 3, 2001

A series of Christmas Eve bombings at Christian churches that killed 15 people and injured more than 100 others has drawn the condemnation of Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid and the lament of Pope John Paul II.

Wahid, a Muslim scholar, labeled the bombings as contrary to Islam and said they were aimed at dividing the country along religious lines. Indonesia is predominantly Muslim, with Christians making up about 9 percent of the nation's 210 million people.

At the Vatican, Pope John Paul II, in his annual "Urbi et Orbi" ("to the city and the world") message on Christmas Day, deplored not only the continuing violence in the Middle East but the bombings in Indonesia. "And what are we to say about countries--I am thinking particularly about Indonesia--where our brothers and sisters in faith, even on this Christmas Day, are undergoing a tragic time of trial and suffering?" John Paul asked.

Although no group has taken responsibility, Indonesian government security forces said that "well-organized terrorists" were behind the attacks, the Associated Press reported. In the past, Wahid has accused supporters of former dictator Suharto of being behind the violence in an effort to divide the country and instill a sense of uncertainty.

"We don't need to fear anyone, including terrorist groups," Wahid said. "The country can't be afraid or intimidated. It must defend all religions." Over the past two years, sectarian violence, mostly in the eastern Moluccan islands once known as the Spice Islands, has resulted in the death of some 5,500 people of both faiths. The new bombings, however, took place in nine cities, including the capital, Jakarta.-RNS