Indonesia bans the celebration of Valentines Day

[Glac09]

Indonesian officials and scholars have banned the celebration of Valentine’s Day because they believe it contravenes Islamic teachings.

In Banda Aceh, the capital of the province of Aceh, thousands of high school students held protests rejecting the celebration of Valentine’s Day.

The mayor, Illiza Sa’aduddin Djamal, and officials joined Saturday’s rallies which were held in four locations in the city.

“The Valentine’s Day celebration has become a culture,” Illiza said.

The mayor added that the rallies were aimed at making young people aware that Valentine’s Day is not part of Islamic culture.

St Valentine’s Day is thought to have roots in a pagan fertility festival in ancient Rome, was further cemented by the death of a Christian martyr called St Valentine, with the idea coming to public consciousness through British literary giants Chaucer and Shakespeare.

The bans were imposed in many Indonesian cities. A similar rally by junior high school students was held in Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city.

In Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi province, a noted Muslim youth group called “Pemuda Muslimin Indonesia” told Muslims in the province to stay away from the celebration.

The influential Indonesian Council of Clerics has repeatedly declared the 14 February celebration as an observance stemming from another faith, saying that celebrating it would be the same as promoting faiths other than Islam.

Indonesia is the largest Muslim majority country in the world with nearly 90 percent of its 265 million population being Muslim.



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[sister herb]

But what about non-Muslim citizens and their rights? It´s like some non-Islamic state would ban celebrating eids...

[ardianto]

Indonesia does not ban Valentine Day celebration. That's only in Aceh province, one of 34 provinces in Indonesia. In other provinces Valentine Day celebration is allowed. But mostly of people themselves do not celebrate Valentine Day.

[keiv]

Good. What purpose is there to Lupercalia, I mean "Valentine's day" other than to make money and spread fitna? If you view this as taking away rights from non Muslims in Muslim countries, then you got it all wrong. Comparing this to taking away Eid for Muslims is a bad example as well. Eid, at least in the US is not commercialized like Valentines day and does not promote the same message as it either, not even close. There would be no reason at all to ban Eid. Banning Valentines day can be justified on so many levels based on it's origins and even what it promotes.

[sister herb]

The matter isn´t is some day commercial (yet?) or what kind of values it promotes (of our perspective) but respecting rights of non-Muslims in Muslim majority countries. How we can demand rights for us if we aren´t ready to demand same to others too and respect different kind of values? Well, Valentine´s Day may not be very important religious day at all but next they might ban the Christmas or the Easter.

[GINGERBEARDMAN]

Indonesia does not ban Valentine Day celebration. That's only in Aceh province, one of 34 provinces in Indonesia. In other provinces Valentine Day celebration is allowed. But mostly of people themselves do not celebrate Valentine Day.

well it's a good start, too much imitation of the kuffar in every muslim nation

[GINGERBEARDMAN]

The matter isn´t is some day commercial (yet?) or what kind of values it promotes (of our perspective) but respecting rights of non-Muslims in Muslim majority countries. How we can demand rights for us if we aren´t ready to demand same to others too and respect different kind of values? Well, Valentine´s Day may not be very important religious day at all but next they might ban the Christmas or the Easter.

the rights of the non-muslim in the shariah are huge, to such an extent they have their own laws and customs in personal, civil law matters such as marriage, divorce etc, though they can refer such issues to a muslim judge if they should wish, as long as they pay the jizyah with humility.

This reached the extent where the zoroastrian is allowed to marry his own mother, if his father dies, as is their custom, though it is one of the most disgusting and reprehensible things that can come to mind, it is allowed in their law, so as it falls under personal matters, it's allowed just as is their worship.

so for the Muslim yes ban christmas and easter, for the kuffar, they can celebrate their festivals at home, or in their places of worship but they do not have a right in an islamic state to promote their kufr upon the masses, nor do shop keepers have a general right to promote and sell things which are haram for the believers.

[azc]

Awareness is needed.

[ardianto]

Indonesian people do not regard Valentine's Day as religious festival, but as pop culture. And in fact Valentine's Day in Indonesia is a trend of pop culture that started by youth in my generation. Previously this event did not exist in Indonesia.

Youth in Indonesia started to know about Valentine's Day in mid of 80's from teen magazines that wrote about this event as life style of people in the West. I was in high school in that time. It made the youth interested to try this trend. Few girls in my class also interested and took initiative to celebrate Valentine's Day.

I still remember that day, February 14, 1987 when my class gathered in the home of one of my classmate. We gathered there,but then we began to confused about what we would do. Finally we were just chat with each other like we usually did in the class. Then we never again interested to celebrate Valentine's Day. The same thing happened to our younger brothers and sisters. They celebrated Valentine's Day, but then not interested again.

However, business world see it differently. They see Valentine's Day as business opportunity. So they create Valentine's card, Valentine's chocolate, Valentine's souvenir. Indeed it make the teens interested to celebrate Valentine's Day. But older people who mature enough realize that this Valentine's actually is just commercial event.

So, the reason why mostly of people in Indonesia do not celebrate Valentine's Day is not religious reason, but because they don't want to be marked as "unstable teens" who easy become victims of commercialization.

Muslims in Indonesia do not regard Valentine's Day as Christian religious festival because the churches themselves do not recognize Valentine Day as their religious festival.

[ardianto]

The matter isn´t is some day commercial (yet?) or what kind of values it promotes (of our perspective) but respecting rights of non-Muslims in Muslim majority countries. How we can demand rights for us if we aren´t ready to demand same to others too and respect different kind of values? Well, Valentine´s Day may not be very important religious day at all but next they might ban the Christmas or the Easter.

Indonesia will never ban Christmas and Easter which are public holidays. Different than Valentine's Day which is not considered as religious festival.

Indonesia is not secular country like many countries in the West, but the country that recognize God as the creator as described in the first chapter in the basic ideology (Pancasila). Atheism is banned in Indonesia, and every Indonesian citizen in obligated to embrace a religion. If someone doesn't fill religion column in his ID card, definitely he would get trouble with government.

There are six official religions in Indonesia. Islam, Protestant Christian, Catholic, Balinese Hindu, Buddhism, Confucianism. Every religion has religious festival that become public holiday. Protestant Christian and Catholic considered as different religion, but they have same public holiday, in exactly three public holidays. People outside these six religions like Sikh or Indian Hindus also allowed to celebrate their religious festival.

Aceh, the province that ban Valentine's Day has autonomous to implement sharia, but they still under authority of central government in Jakarta. So they will not allowed to ban non-Islamic religious festival, especially religious festival of official religion. Sharia that implemented in Aceh is not so strict like in other places. There is no hand cutting or stoned to death in sharia that implemented in Aceh.

[The-Deist]

Is agnosticsm a religion in Indonesia?

[ardianto]

Is agnosticsm a religion in Indonesia?

No. If you were Indonesian citizen you must pretend you embrace a religion, like the animist who pretend as Balinese Hindu or Buddhist when they fill religion column in ID card.