North Maluku’s Religious Sects Agree to Foster Peace

May 31, 2009

Author: Nurfika Osman

Source: The Jakarta Globe

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/north-malukus-religious-sects-agree-to-foster-peace/278423

Following three days of multicultural and interfaith discussions, religious leaders and the people of North Maluku have agreed to put the 1999 sectarian conflicts behind them and join forces to build a better future.

Amidhan, head of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said the dialogue, organized to strengthen bonds between residents from different religious groups, heard the opinions of residents and local leaders on how to reinstate the interreligious harmony that was once the province’s hallmark.

“The dialogue concluded that residents in the province wanted to once more live in harmony,” Amidhan said, adding that the conference was also held to identify problems in the province.

Local officials and at least 30 leaders from six faiths in North Maluku attended the conference, the first of its kind since religious violence broke out in 1999.