Local tribute to Cheng Hoo mosques 12-16-2011 08:56 BJT Play Video Some 600 years ago, Admiral Cheng Hoo sailed South and left his mark in places such as the northern coast of Java. To commemorate his presence in Surabaya, Moslem in this city have founded a mosque. It has a Chinese temple-like architecture dominated by red, green and yellow with old Chinese ornamentation. CCTV correspondent Andy Saputra reports from Surabaya. It looks like a Chinese temple. But this is one of the few Chinese mosques in Indonesia. And this particular one has become a symbol for the Chinese Muslim community in Surabaya. It is the Cheng Hoo mosque. The name was taken from the great Chinese discoverer Admiral Cheng Hoo, who came to south east Asia 600 years ago on a peace mission Some 600 years ago, Admiral Cheng Hoo sailed South and left his mark in places such as the northern coast of Java. To commemorate his presence in Surabaya, Moslem in this city have founded a mosque. Mosque caretaker Hassan Basri said, "We chose Cheng Hoo as a tribute to the Admiral, he has become a symbol here and we want to show that Chinese and Indonesian Muslim has a long history" The mosque, built back in 2003 by the Indonesian Chinese Muslim Association or PITI and they claim it is the first and only mosque that carries a Chinese name. Some 600 years ago, Admiral Cheng Hoo sailed South and left his mark in places such as the northern coast of Java. To commemorate his presence in Surabaya, Moslem in this city have founded a mosque. 15 years ago though, this would be unthinkable to achieve in Indonesia. With the iron fist rule of former president Soeharto, Chinese and Chinese culture were oppressed in the name of unity. Historian Shinta Devi Rahayu said, "During that time, the Chinese community lived in fear, only after the reform era they can slowly express themselves again. The Cheng Hoo mosque is certainly a real representation of that new tolerance." Mosque caretaker Hassan Basri A lesson of tolerance that is well realized in the architecture of the building. Andy Saputra said, "The mosque was built with an inclusive principals in mind with integration symbols embedded in the building, for instance, the roof was made as an octagon as a tribute to Chinese culture, but the most important feature that they want to put forward is that they intentionally built this building without doors signifying that they welcome anyone, regardless of race or religion." According to Hassan, the mosque has played an important role in assimilation after years of segregation. For the community itself, the mosque is more than a place of worship. Indonesian Chinese Muslim Tjio Hie said, "I’m very proud of this mosque, it represents us as a community." The foundation also built a kindergarten nearby in hopes to plant the seeds of tolerance. Basri said, "We want the kids to respect different religion and culture, to be tolerant and to be inspired by Cheng Hoo’s bravery and journey." http://english.cntv.cn/program/cultureexpress/20111216/106178.shtml http://export-import-indonesia.blogspot.com/ http://jakartapost.blogspot.com/ http://indonesiaupdates.blogspot.com/ http://www.pulsagram.com/?id=CN121810 http://www.asetBCA.com/?id=bimagroup
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
