02/16/2012 Indonesia (The Jakarta Globe) - Disappointed with the president’s vague pledges to “resolve” the plight of GKI Yasmin church, the nation’s main Christian organizations have taken the matter to the Constitutional Court.
Andreas Yewangoe, chairman of the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI), said on Wednesday that there was deep frustration in the Christian community over the state’s failure to make the Bogor administration comply with a Supreme Court order to unseal the church and allow the congregation to worship in peace.
“Last December we reported this matter to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the hope that he would admonish the mayor and force him to carry out the ruling, but all we’ve received are promises,” he said at the Constitutional Court.
“Now we’re hearing him talk about how he can’t personally intervene because of the regional autonomy law, which meant it was the Bogor mayor’s business.”
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Mahfud M.D., the Constitutional Court chief justice, said he was similarly frustrated by the government’s inability to force Bogor Mayor Diani Budiarto to comply, but added there was little his institution could do.
“In this context I’m hesitant to say anything new because everyone else — the Supreme Court, the House of Representatives, Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah — have already pointed out that the ruling is final and should be obeyed,” he said.
NU and Muhammadiyah are the country’s two biggest Islamic organizations.
Mahfud said he would nevertheless do his best to help the GKI Yasmin community get its message across to the authorities.
“Obviously we will take the channels available to us to talk with the parties responsible for this matter,” he said, adding that this included the president, the home affairs minister and Diani.
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Yudhoyono vowed in a nationally televised question and answer session on Monday to resolve the standoff, but gave no concrete recommendations.
On Wednesday, in an address before 119 ambassadors to Indonesia, he echoed that pledge and said he was “deeply concerned” about the issue, but stressed that it was up to authorities in Bogor and West Java to find a solution.
