11/6/2024 Indonesia (International Christian Concern) — Several residents in Pegambiran, a village in the city of Cirebon, West Java, Indonesia, recently rejected a proposal to establish a church in a local warehouse. 

A villager named Aris Munanto and several other residents have expressed their disapproval of the church’s presence in their community.  

“The building was initially rented as a warehouse, but suddenly, they wanted to convert it into a place of worship without any clear socialization,” Munanto said.  

He added that residents didn’t think the administrative licensing process was transparent, and nobody sought the community’s input or approval. Villagers who disapproved of the church using the warehouse expressed their views by hanging banners near the Lemahwungkuk district office. The banners have since been removed.  

Adam Wallesa, leader of the Lemahwungkuk district, where Pegambiran is located, said that his party had tried to organize a meeting between several parties to find common ground regarding the existing challenges. 

“We have facilitated maintaining harmony between religious communities in Lemahwungkuk district related to the plan to use the building as a temporary place of worship,” he said.  

However, he said that, based on the meeting results, several residents still rejected using the warehouse as a church building.

According to Wallesa, the village leader for the ministry of religion offered recommendations for establishing a place of worship in the community.  

“The recommendation from the village head has been issued from the Ministry of Religion. What has not been issued is the recommendation from the FKUB (Interfaith Harmony Forum),” he said. 

The leader of the Cirebon City FKUB, Abdul Hamid, explained why his party has yet to be able to issue a recommendation for establishing the place of worship. 

“We from the FKUB still cannot issue a recommendation because the situation in the community is still not conducive,” Hamid said. 

Villagers said that if authorities approve the conversion of the warehouse into a church, they will take further action to prevent it from happening. 

“If this continues and violates the rules,” a villager said, “we will take further, bigger action.” 

To read more news stories, visit the ICC Newsroom. For interviews, please email press@persecution.org.