Minister of Religion (Menag) Nasaruddin Umar expressed his concern over the incident of disbanding Christian worship activities at a prayer house belonging to the Congregation of the Christian Church of Setia Indonesia (GKSI) in Padang, West Sumatra.
He emphasized the importance of ensuring similar incidents do not happen again in the future through a more touching prevention approach to the root of the problem.
"I will send our team to Padang. I hope that is the last incident that happened in Indonesia. This is our obsession. This kind of misunderstanding must be stopped," said Nasaruddin Umar in Jakarta, Antara, Wednesday, July 30.
The Minister of Religion said that his party had coordinated with the Regional Office of the Ministry of Religion of West Sumatra (West Sumatra Regional Office of the Ministry of Religion), and in the near future he would send a team to the location to follow up on the situation directly.
The Grand Imam of the Istiqlal Mosque also gave an example of a similar case that had occurred in West Java and had been successfully handled through communication and collaboration across parties.
We have communicated with the Regional Office. We will send our team to find the best solution. I heard the situation is under control by the authorities and friends in the regions," said Nasaruddin.
As part of a long-term approach, the Ministry of Religion is also introducing the Cinta Curriculum which will be applied in an educational environment. This program aims to build a culture of mutual understanding and erode prejudice between community groups.
"The Ministry of Religion has its own philosophy. If this happens again and again, maybe it will happen again. So we are looking for another approach through the Curriculum of Love," he said.
This program, according to Nasaruddin, is designed to eliminate various forms of suspicion and misunderstanding through education that instills values of tolerance and empathy from an early age.
Previously, on Saturday (27/7/2025), a group of residents dispersed worship activities at the GKSI prayer house in Padang Sarai Village, Koto Tangah District, Padang City.
In this incident, there was panic among the congregation, including children. The crowd was also reported to have vandalized a number of facilities at the location.
Video footage circulating shows dozens of people visiting the prayer house carrying wood. Several congregants were seen leaving the location, while some of the masses damaged chairs and glass of the building.
Deputy West Sumatra Regional Police Chief Brigadier General Pol Solihin said his party had named nine people as suspected perpetrators based on video recordings.
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"We have secured nine people, and of course we will develop again. These nine people are according to the video at the location," said Solihin.
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