An Indonesian city has ordered its top civil servants to visit their local mosque for dawn prayers or risk being sacked, underscoring the growing influence of religion across the world’s biggest Muslim majority country. Senior bureaucrats in Palembang, co-host of last month’s Asian Games, are now required to visit their local mosque at the crack of dawn — and they’ve been warned that a smartphone app was in the works to sniff out the less-than-devout. The order, which may be a first for Indonesia, is aimed at helping bureaucrats better relate to residents’ concerns while the early wake-up call could also boost productivity, city spokesman Amiruddin Sandy told AFP. “By praying together at dawn with regular people, we get a chance to hear from them directly,” he said, adding that common complaints ranged from water not running to broken street lights. The edict comes as Indonesian society’s lurch toward religious conservatism has challenged its long-held reputation for having a tolerant brand of Islam. Religious and sexual minorities have been subject to increasing prejudice, from authorities whipping gay people in conservative Aceh province to Christian congregations being targeted by suicide bombers earlier this year. Health officials in Aceh have struggled to roll out a child vaccination programme over concerns the medicine contains traces of pork — outlawed in Islam — while the country’s leader Joko Widodo drew criticism for picking a conservative Muslim cleric as his running mate in next year’s presidential elections. Published in Daily Times, September 21st 2018.