The national conference is a reflection of Indonesia's success in maintaining national harmony despite existing religious differences, Secretary General of the Home Affairs Ministry Suhajar Diantoro stated.
"We are here to demonstrate that Indonesia is a unique country because our unity is based on differences," he remarked while opening the FKUB National Conference here on Thursday.
As the country, which comprises over 17 thousand islands and consists of multiple ethnic groups and languages, is united by the Bhinneka Tunggal Ika (Unity in Diversity) spirit, it is hoped that the conference would serve as a momentum to realize harmony in national progress, he said.
"FKUB must be the vanguard in realizing interfaith harmony, particularly in Riau Islands province," he added.
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Meanwhile, Riau Islands Governor Ansar Ahmad said that the residents of the province have long interacted with and accepted people from various religions, ethnic groups, and social and economic statuses, and lived together in harmony and unity.
The governor urged all parties to maintain interfaith harmony, which is based on tolerance, mutual understanding, and respect for different religious faiths, in keeping with the national Pancasila ideology and the 1945 Constitution.
"The development of interfaith harmony in Riau Islands has been assessed to be in a 'good' category, as the province's religious harmony index in 2021 reached 75.5 points and was in the upper tier among Indonesian provinces," Ahmad noted.
He highlighted that the contributions of regional authorities, regional leaders' forum, public communities, and the FKUB were central to the success achieved in maintaining interfaith harmony in Riau Islands.
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Translator: Ogen, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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