Shopping malls: un-Islamic. Violently protesting and clashing with riot police over the existence of shopping malls: Islamic. Sharia Alert from modern, moderate Indonesia. “Indonesia: Islamic movement protests against shoppings [sic] malls,” from AKI, October 6 (thanks to C. Cantoni):
Jakarta, 6 Oct. (AKI) – Members of the Indonesia’s Islamic Student Assocation (HMI) clashed with riot police during a rally in front of the Kediri Regional Representatives Council (DPD) office on Thursday.
“Open the gates or we’ll break them down,” protesters yelled.
The students were rallying against the mushrooming of modern shopping and karaoke centers in Kediri. The malls, they said, had caused the demise of other smaller shops.
Kediri, in eastern Java, is situated 105 kilometers southwest of Surabaya, the country’s second-largest city.
The students also demanded the closure of karaoke centers, which they said were centers for prostitution. The group urged members of the council to sign a statement saying they would close the businesses.