Even though an Indonesian church has been granted the appropriate construction permit, hundreds protested at the site, saying they were not allowed a voice in the planning process.
Video clips from July 5 show hundreds of Muslims protesting construction of Studio Alam Batak Kato Protestant Church in Kalibaru village in Indonesia’s West Java province, reported Morning Star News.
RELATED: Check out more stories on the persecuted church.
“Demonstrators claimed they were not religiously intolerant but upset that church leaders failed to communicate enough regarding construction plans, according to Tribunneesdepok.com. Rudi Ardiansyah, head of the Community Empowerment Body, stated that although conflicts with the church arose frequently during construction planning, the community was not invited to participate in discussions,” Morning Star reported.
Zetsplayrs Tarigan, a church leader, refuted those claims. He said 60% of village residents had approved the construction. He also said church management had met July 3 with heads of different representative bodies within the village and district.
Morning Star states that the Islamic character of Indonesia has become stricter in the past few years and that “churches involved in evangelistic outreach are at a risk of being targeted by Islamic extremist groups, according to Open Doors.”
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