The Indonesian police announced the arrest of 6 people working in a chain of bars and nightclubs, on charges of contempt of religion, amid a wide wave of anger against this chain after it was exposed to the shrine of the Holy Prophet Muhammad - may God bless him and grant him peace - and Lady Mary, peace be upon her.
Crowds of protesters gathered in front of a bar in the city of Bogor, south of Jakarta, following the "Holywings" chain of bars and nightclubs, after the chain posted on social media platforms an advertisement - which it later deleted - about providing free alcohol to everyone bearing the name Muhammad or Maryam.
The protesters demanded that those responsible for this act be prosecuted, as they insulted Islam and Christianity as well.
4 national youth organizations in Indonesia - the largest Muslim country in terms of population - filed complaints with the police against this chain with its various branches.
At a televised news conference late Friday night, police introduced the six people who had been arrested, including the "Holly Wings" promoter.
Polres Metro Jakarta Selatan menetapkan 6 Tersangka Kasus Promosi Miras Muhammad dan Maria di Holywings, mereka adalah para petinggi divisi kreatif Holywings Indonesia beserta sejumlah stafnya.
Ancaman hukuman selama 10 tahun penjara… Direksinya ngga kena ya?
pic.twitter.com/588Opnh1vS
— t°Jabar (@tijabar) June 25, 2022
"Six suspects have been identified and they are all working for the company," South Jakarta Police Chief Budi Hrdi Susianto said.
He added that "the suspects made this substance to attract customers to their stores, especially those that achieve less than 60% of the targeted sales."
The police said that those arrested were charged with several charges, including contempt of religion and spreading religious hatred, and added that they face a possible prison sentence of up to 10 years if convicted of these charges.
Holywings promised a bottle of Gordon's dry gin for men named Muhammad and a bottle of Gordon's Pink Gin for women named Maria every Thursday https://t.co/9Ncuk1rytq
— Ericssen (@EricssenWen) June 24, 2022
public apology
For its part, the chain "Holly Wings" issued a public apology, saying that the management was not aware of this promotional ad.
On the other hand, the well-known Indonesian preacher from the Chinese minority, Felix Siawi, said that despite the company's apology, the announcement was deliberately to provoke controversy in the community.
Siawi criticized the repeated insulting rhetoric and practices of religion in Indonesia by those he described as anti-religious.