TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Minister of Religious Affairs, Lukman Hakim Saifuddin, shared his opinion on a previously viral incident occurred at a mosque in South Jakarta that allegedly refused to hold a funeral prayer (Salat al-Janazah) for an elderly woman, Hindun, who had passed away. The refusal was said caused by her vote in the regional head election; it is said that when Hindun was alive, she voted for the candidate who was not supported by the majority of the people in the residence.
The Minister said that such thing should not have been happened, apart from whether it is true or not.
“A place of worship is a sacred location, don’t use it to spark conflicts among us,” Lukman said on Monday, March 13, 2017.
The rumor said that the mosque’s management refused to pray for Hindun since she allegedly supported Basuki Tjahaja Purnama or Ahok and Djarot Saiful Hidayat in the 2017 Jakarta Gubernatorial Election. At the same occurrence, a banner which stated the mosque’s refusal in holding a funeral prayer for Ahok-Djarot supporters had just been raised nearby.
The incident became viral even though the parties involved had never been verified the issue. Hindun's family denied the news, they argued that the absence of a funeral prayer for Hindun was because the mosque managements suggested the prayer be held at the family’s house since it was already late in the evening.
Lukman aware about the tense situation in Jakarta ahead of the second round of voting. However, he reminded that it is improper to justify a conflict appears due to a news on a worship place.
“Each party should refrain from the potential conflicts,” by doing so, problems that are related to religious places do not spread to political matters.
“A worship place should be the safest place for us all since god guarantees the safety of whoever enters and is in it,” Lukman added.
ISTMAN MP
