Sari Roti recently became the most hated brand of bread amongst some Muslims in Indonesia after the company issued a statement denying that they supported the massive December 2 rally against Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama for his alleged blasphemy. In the aftermath of Sari Roti’s statement, many have called for a boycott, or “economic jihad” against the company, and some even took to social media to share pictures of themselves stepping on their bread.
But if you’re the kind of person who wants to boycott Sari Roti, but still likes to eat bread, what should you do? Well, there are plenty of other bread makers in Indonesia, but most of them do not make their religious or political affiliations clear on their packaging, putting you in danger of accidentally eating bread made by people with beliefs different than your own.
Fortunately, if you are a Muslim who wants to purchase bread that clearly indicates that you reject non-Muslim leaders, there is now a baked good especially for you.
It’s called Roti Almaidah, in reference to Surah Al Maidah 5:51 from the Quran, which is the verse that Ahok allegedly blasphemed against during a speech in the Thousand Islands, leading to his current legal and political woes (some, but certainly not all, interpret the verse to mean that Muslims should never choose non-Muslims as their leaders).
Roti Almaidah was officially launched by the Regional Executive Board of Muhammadiyah’s Surabaya branch on Friday. The head of the Islamic organization’s Council on Economics and Entrepreneurship, Aqib Zarnuji, said that the purpose of Roti Almaidah was not only to give Muslims an alternative to the boycotted Sari Roti, but also to provide them with more economic and professional opportunities.
But such opportunities cost money, which is why Aqib said that Muhammadiyah was selling shares in the new enterprise to get it off the ground.
“The price is Rp 1 million per share,” Aqib said at the launch as quoted by Vivanews, who added that stock owners would earn 30 percent of the venture’s profits.
Aqih also said that the bread will be sold in outlets and souvenir centers throughout Surabaya. In what is probably just a matter of total coincidence, the management of the SD Muhammadiyah 4 school in Surabaya announced, just the day before the launch of Roti Almaidah, that it would be boycotting Sari Roti and not buying any of its products anymore. Lucky for them there just happens to be a new source of halal bread in town.
One thing we are curious about – will non-Muslims be allowed to eat Roti Almaidah, or would that would be considered blasphemous as well?
