Manado (Fides Service) - Catholic institutes of education in Indonesia are schools of inter-religious harmony and national unity not only for Indonesian Christians, but also for Muslims and Hindus. In fact more than half the pupils who attend Church-run schools in this country belong to other religions. In Manado diocese, North Sulawesi province, and the predominantly Muslim provinces of Gornotolo and Central Sulawesi about 40,000 pupils attend Church run institutions of education: 20 high schools and 41 junior high-schools, 139 primary schools and 71 kindergartens. Recently Bishop Joseph Suwatan of Manado told an assembly of junior high schools "Most of you are not Catholics, but you have shown a spirit of togetherness. This spirit must be preserved and developed". This year the annual School Assembly focussed on the theme "Promoting togetherness of Catholic Schools". Fr Fred Tawaluyan chairman of the diocese Commission for Education, says that between 30 and 40 percent of the 7,000 pupils in the diocese's 41 junior high schools are Catholics, more than half are Protestants while the rest are Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus. In Indonesia the Catholic Church provides education for 380,594 students at 1,283 secondary schools; 517,364 pupils ate 2,445 elementary schools; 78,209 pupils at 963 kindergartens. (Fides Service 12/12/2002)