VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

VOInews Jakarta: The Istiqlal Mosque which is situated in Central Jakarta represents Islam in Indonesia. Under the leadership of Grand Imam Prof. Dr. KH. Nasaruddin Umar, M.A., the largest mosque in Southeast Asia, has received a number of international awards. In an interview with the Mutiara Ramadhan program which was broadcast on Thursday (04/04/2024) in the Voice of Indonesia- Radio Republik Indonesia channel, Nasaruddin Umar conveyed a number of achievements achieved by the mosque which can accommodate 200,000 worshipers.

Firstly, the Istiqlal Mosque became the first house of worship to obtain a Green Building Certificate. "The neatest, most beautiful, greenest house of worship is Istiqlal, which means it beats all other houses of worship. "And this is the first time a house of worship has received this EDGE (Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies, ed.) certificate," said Nasaruddin Umar to Voice of Indonesia.

Secondly, the Istiqlal Mosque is considered successful in gathering and promoting universal brotherhood by the United Nations. "I was recently invited to the United Nations, where I was given appreciation for the success of the Istiqlal Mosque in becoming a melting point not only across religions, but also across ethnicities, across nationalities, and also across sects." continued the Grand Imam of the Istiqlal Mosque.

Thirdly, the Istiqlal Mosque is often invited to represent Indonesian Muslims in world forums. "Alhamdulillah, we also have world trust, representation of Muslims in Indonesia. "Istiqlal is often involved, like yesterday at the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the American Department, then China, and in several countries, Istiqlal was asked to be involved as a representative of Indonesian Muslims," explained Nasaruddin Umar.

Fourthly, the Istiqlal Mosque received a World Bank award as the only mosque free of Covid-19, and received the title of cleanest house of worship in the world. "We have also received an international award for being the only public space that has zero resistance to the corona virus" said the Deputy Minister of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia in 2011-2014.

Currently, the Istiqlal Mosque is building a hallway that connects the mosque which was inaugurated in 1978 with The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption, well known as the Cathedral. Nasaruddin Umar expressed his joy over the construction of the tunnel, which he interpreted as a symbol of tolerance between people. "What we will build is not (just) a corridor that connects Istiqlal and the Cathedral, but what we will build is a symbol. the symbol of tolerance," said Nasaruddin Umar to Voice of Indonesia. (Daniel)