Concern is growing over viral videos and photographs that claim to show residents in Bekasi, Indonesia protesting against plans to build a Hindu temple.
The videos and images that surfaced online shows protesters carrying banners threatening Jihad, or Muslim holy war, if the temple is built, The Jakarta Post reported. Bekasi Police chief Sukma Kumara said that while the protest in the Sukahurip village in Sukatani district did take place, it may not have been staged by locals.
Kumara said that discussions of the temple construction plans have been going smoothly since 2017. The protesters are said to be from outside Sukahurip village, where the temple is supposed to be built.
Data from the Bekasi Religious Harmony Forum (FKUB Bekasi) pointed out that there are about 6,000 to 7,000 Hindus living in Bekasi, West Java.
I Made Pande Cakra, the head of FKUB Bekasi, said Hindus in Bekasi have to travel great distances in order to practice their faith. The Hindu community established a committee and worked hard to meet all the requirements for building a temple.
According to Article 29 of the 1945 Constitution, people of all religions have the same right to practice their faiths in their houses of worship in Indonesia.
