The Jakarta Post | Sun, 02/15/2009 8:50am
L for lungs: Teen campaigners show off their hearts as they participate in Tebaran Kasih Sayang, Bukan Asap Rokok (Spread love not smoke) rally around the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Jakarta on Saturday. (JP/R. Berto Wedhatama)
Giving presents on Valentine’s Day remains popular among young people in Indonesia’s big cities as they believe the day is special.
“Despite pros and cons of giving presents on Valentine’s Day discussed among various circles, giving a gift to the loved one on the day is more special for me than on other days,” Doni, a senior high school student in Pangkalpinang, Bangka-Belitung province, said over the weekend.
He said he gave a colorful doll to his girlfriend on Saturday.
“Love has a broad meaning, not only for the girlfriends, but for everyone including parents. But at the moment Valentine’s Day focuses just on the girlfriend,” Doni said, as quoted by Antara news agency.
Doni’s sentiments were shared by Ziska, another high school student, who said he had arranged a special moment with his girl. In Banyuwangi, East Java, youth were busy preparing presents for their special ones the day before.
Ari, a vocational high student in Banyuwangi, said, “I gave my girlfriend a doll worth Rp 32,000 (US$2.9).
In Surabaya, East Java, flower sellers on Jl. Kayoon felt the windfall from Valentine’s Day.
“This week we’ve been very busy serving customers,” Ina, the owner of Inafem flower shop in Surabaya, said Saturday.
Roses are the traditional token for Valentine’s Day, but not everyone is celebrating. In Yogyakarta 100 Gadjah Mada University students, from the Campus Proselytism Institute Forum, staged a rally on campus Friday, opposing the celebration of Valentine’s Day, as, they said, it tainted the holiness of love.
In Bandung, West Java, a local chapter of the Indonesian Ulema Council issued an edict, stating celebrating Valentine’s Day was haram, or not permitted by Islamic law.
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