JAKARTA - INDONESIA'S Muslim majority has become less tolerant over the past decade and the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is turning a blind eye to the problem, researchers said on Wednesday.
A new survey by the Centre for the Study of Islam and Society found 'a worrying increase' in religious intolerance among Muslims in 2010 compared to 2001.
Centre chief Jajat Burhanudin said certain ministers in Mr Yudhoyono's cabinet actively encouraged intolerance, while the police too often failed to protect minority groups.
'If this continues, the process of democracy in this country will be disrupted as people will justify their acts in the name of Islam,' he said.
Of 1,200 adult Muslim men and women surveyed nationwide, 57.8 per cent said they were against the construction of churches and other non-Muslim places of worship, the highest rate the study centre has recorded since 2001.
More than a quarter, or 27.6 per cent, said they minded if non-Muslims taught their children, up from 21.4 per cent in 2008. -- AFP
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