Indonesia (International Christian Concern) — For five years, Pastor Jafar Silasko and his congregation have been fighting for a permit for the Indonesian Gospel Tabernacle Church (GKII) Rhema Sandubaya in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia.  

They applied for permits at every level from the village to the president. For the last two years, the church has hopped from location to location. 

“In 2023, we held services in the Ministry of Religious Affairs hall for one year,” Pastor Silasko said. “In 2024, we held services in the sub-district office hall for six months, and then in the village head office. From December 2024 to December 2025, the city government rented us a shophouse for one year. After that, we’ll struggle to find a new location. 

“All this time with the congregation, praise God, the congregation has remained strong, faithful, and joined us everywhere. It was indeed our hope to worship at the church. Indeed, a member of the Mosque Council came to us. I showed him this place of worship, which has soundproofing.” 

But GKII Rhema Sandubaya is still unable to hold Sunday services and is only used for other days of the week. 

Amid the complex process of obtaining a permit to build a house of worship, Pastor Silasko received threats from authorities and residents. In December 2023, about 12 people, along with the neighborhood association (RT) leader, visited the pastor. They threatened that if services continued, other members of the community would visit them.  

“The main issue that continues to recur in cases of disturbances to places of worship relates to the standard requirements as stipulated in Joint Regulations of the Minister of Religious Affairs and the Minister of Home Affairs (PBM) Number 9 and 8 of 2006,” the SETARA Institute stated in its report. 

The regulation requires the support of 90 prospective worshipers and 60 residents, which is often used in practice as a legitimate tool to reject the construction of certain places of worship, especially those belonging to minority religious groups. 

In many cases, even after these requirements are met, residents continue to reject the place of worship, and local authorities fail to demonstrate the courage to uphold justice. This demonstrates how regulations intended to ensure harmony are often used as tools of discrimination. 

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