Jakarta Campaigns for Quieter Mosques
“Imagine if the preacher is Quraish Shihab, but [a bad sound system affected] the message. What a loss,” Jusuf Kalla, head of the Indonesian Mosque Council (DMI), said in his speech to launch the campaign, referring to a moderate Muslim scholar who is known for his interpretation of the Quran.
Kalla said that most of the mosques in the southeastern Asian country do not have decent amplification systems.
Launching the nationwide program, he dispatched 50 cars in which more than 150 technicians were ready to help mosque caretakers improve the sound quality of their amplifiers.
The new campaign was introduced after repeated complains about the country’s poor quality sound systems which resulted in noise pollution.
Indonesian mosques often use loudspeakers to raise Adhan as well as broadcasting Quran recitation and religious sermons.
The use of loudspeakers becomes further extensive in the holy fasting month of Ramadan, when Muslims dedicate their time to be closer to Allah through prayers, self-restraint and good deeds.
But the high sound carried by the speakers has triggered complaints from many residents, especially those living near mosques.
Earlier in 2013, Kalla announced that the DMI would initiate a countrywide sound system donation program.
Kalla has also proposed a ban on the amplification of mosque services.
The umbrella body said that mosques would be banned from using loudspeakers for religious sermons and Quran recitation, allowing them for raising Adhan only.
Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim state with Muslims making up around 85 percent of its 237-million population.
There are nearly 800,000 mosques in Indonesia.
Source: On Islam
