DON'T LET TERRORIST STEAL OUR JOYFUL CHRISTMAS

By Akhmad Kusaeni

The United States, British and Australian government had warned their citizen against all but essential travel to Indonesia during the Christmas and New Year holidays. The U.S. Department of State, for example, had reminded Americans that the terrorist threat in Indonesia continues and may increase over the December-January holiday period.
The U.S. Intelligence Agency reports indicate that terrorists are planning attacks against a wide variety of targets. These attacks could occur at any time and could be directed against any location, including churches and other religious sites.
Since the “war on terror” was declared after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S., Indonesia has seen three major terror bombings in Jakarta and Bali. For many Indonesians, the days of joyful and peaceful Christmases are long past. Bombings have occurred during the Christmas/New Year's period. At least 15 Christians were killed in the 2000 bombings across the country and 96 other churchgoers were injured.
Fears of bomb attacks also haunt Christmas celebration this time. Police personnel nationwide have pledged that they would beef up security at the churches and cathedrals. The Police bomb squad will comb churches before Christmas sermons were held, and some churches would be equipped with metal detectors.
Every church leader will be tightly guarded by police officers. In addition, police department will also deploy four to 10 officers to guard each church in several provinces. Perhaps no one ever imagined that the citizens of this country would need a police guard to commune with God; yet, this has now become a reality.
Brian Michael Jenkins, expert on terrorism from Rand Corporation, says that a key goal of terrorists is to undermine confidence in our security, our economy and ourselves. According to Jenkins, the most powerful weapon in the terrorist arsenal is fear.
Certainly, the tighter security imposed throughout the country during Christmas and New Year Eve is necessary, but no amount of security can protect us against unbridled fear. We must remember that responding courageously and intellectually to terrorism is far more effective than responding fearfully and emotionally. If we become paranoid because of possible bomb attacks, it mean terrorist arsenal work and terrorism prevail.
Terrorists want us to imprison ourselves. We must not. We should not sit home and hide in basement forever and pray “Oh, Lord, deliver us from evil”. We have to go on with our life. We have Christmas and holiday seasons to celebrate. And nothing can stop us from having a joyful Christmas and a happy New Year. Not, even the travel warnings or traumatic bomb attacks experiences in the past.
Of course, we should not naïve about bombing threats and possibly terrorist attacks. There is no such thing as perfect security in today’s world. That is why all rational precautions need to be taken. We acknowledge that there are still reasons for concerns.
As the main suspects of past bombing cases remain at large, citizen face an extra concern as to whether going to mall for shopping or to church for Christmas Mass will be safe. But, those concerns must not paralyze us. After all, we are dealing with a relatively small number of terrorists. It can be combated and contained without totally shackling ourselves.
In the dark days of the Great Depression, President Frankin Delano Roosevelt said in his 1933 inaugural address: “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself --nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
Roosevelt was talking about the Great Depression, of course, not the terror spread by Al-Qaeda or Jemaah Islamiyah. But as we dream of the peaceful “White Christmas” Irving Berlin wrote of 62 years ago, we should remember we can come through this “under bomb threats” Christmas if we achieve the freedom from fear Roosevelt called for 70 years ago.
“White Christmas” reflected American people’s deep yearning in the early days of World War II for more peaceful times “just like the one we used to know”. We, Indonesian people, also used to know and to think of Chrismas as a fun-living time to go out, have a big party, open presents.
Bombings threats should not make our Christmas under custody. Don’t let terrorist steal our joyful Christmas celebration and fear of possible terrorist attacks imprison us.
We wish all of our readers a happy and safe holiday.