JAKARTA- Ethnic Chinese communities throughout Indonesia celebrated Chinese New Year on Sunday, by visiting temples for praying to their ancestors and gods. In Jakarta, Dharma Bhakti, Sam Njan Kiong and Amorva Bumi temples were filled with visitors celebrating the Chinese New Year, which is known locally as `Imlek' in Indonesia. The ethnic Chinese, who make up around 5 percent of Indonesia's 225 million populations, usually burn incense and pray for luck and happiness in the coming year in the temples. Beginning in 2002, Chinese New Year became a national holiday, to the pleasure of more than 10 millions of Chinese Indonesians, although Chinese New Year was not a national holiday on the Indonesian calendar for many years. In the Amorva Bumi temple located in South Jakarta, the number of visitors decreased than that of last year’s because the temple was flooded following downpours yesterday.
Hong We, a founder of the Amorva Bumi temple, said that the temple was flooded since Saturday morning.
"Despite the flood, however, some visitors came to pray. But, the number of the visitors was less than that of last year," he said.
Indonesia's ethnic Chinese communities in other cities especially in Medan, Surabaya, Batam, Makassar, Balikpapan and Pontianak, also observed the Chinese New Year smoothly and peacefully on Sunday. *ant