Clerics told to end rivalry to save NU<\/p>\n
Blontank Poer and Tarko Sudiarno, Semarang<\/p>\n
Hundreds of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) leaders and clerics appealed on
\nSunday for an end to political rivalry within the nation's
\nbiggest Muslim organization ahead of the July 5 presidential
\nelection.<\/p>\n
They urged NU clerics to maintain neutrality in the election,
\nsaying their blatant support for particular presidential
\ncandidates had led to increasing confusion among the some 40
\nmillion members of the organization.<\/p>\n
The call was made by NU clerics from Java gathered at the Edi
\nMancoro Islamic boarding school, which is led by Mahfud Ridwan,
\nin Gedangan in the Central Java capital of Semarang.<\/p>\n
Among the prominent clerics in attendance were NU law-making
\ncouncil member Mustofa Bisri, better known as Gus Mus,
\nAbdurrahman Chudlori, R. Muhaimin, Mahfud Ridwan and acting NU
\nchairman Masdar Farid Mas'udi.<\/p>\n
The meeting was convened to try to stop the NU from falling
\napart as rival figures blatantly endorse or oppose the vice
\npresidential bids of its senior leaders -- Hasyim Muzadi,
\nSolahuddin Wahid and Jusuf Kalla.<\/p>\n
Also, the NU central board plans to state on June 30 its
\nofficial neutral stance on the presidential election.<\/p>\n
"As clerics who are followed by Muslims, they should refrain
\nfrom giving support to any political force, including during the
\npresidential campaign," Gus Mus, who chairs the Roudlotut
\nTholibin Islamic boarding school in Rembang, Central Java, said
\nafter the meeting.<\/p>\n
He said that "political pragmatism" on the part of a number of
\ntop NU leaders had had an adverse impact on the organization's
\nfollowers at the grassroots level.<\/p>\n
The nomination of Hasyim Muzadi, who has temporarily stepped
\naside as NU chairman, as the vice presidential candidate of
\nPresident Megawati Soekarnoputri, for example, has involved
\nalmost all structural networks in the organization, from the
\nupper to the lower levels, in practical politics, he said.<\/p>\n
Gus Mus said the clerics' support for Hasyim, Solahuddin or
\nKallah had resulted in "extraordinary impacts" on their
\nfollowers.<\/p>\n
"It could incite conflict among their followers if the clerics
\ndo not end their rivalry," he added.<\/p>\n
Masdar Farid Mas'udi concurred with Gus Mus.<\/p>\n
"The NU is on the brink of destruction due to political
\nadventurism by some elite leaders and members, which have
\ntriggered an internal rift," he said.<\/p>\n
The NU's rift appeared to escalate after several other
\ninfluential clerics, who were gathered in the East Java town of
\nPasuruan, issued a non-binding edict against a woman president.
\nMegawati is the only female candidate contesting the July 5
\nelection.<\/p>\n
Sunday's meeting in Semarang also called on all NU supporters
\nto stick to the khittah decision of 1984 to withdraw from
\npolitics and focus on the organization's socio-religious
\nactivities for people as a whole.<\/p>\n
The khittah decision says that involvement in politics would
\nonly hinder the NU from fulfilling its overall social role, the
\nclerics added.<\/p>\n
The NU once served as a socio-religious organization that
\nhelped promote various movements, such as democracy, pluralism,
\ncivilian supremacy, human rights, gender equality and other
\nhumanist issues.<\/p>\n
Masdar said the participation of clerics in politics, which
\ncould later drag the NU into practical politics, resulted in the
\nneglect of social and religious affairs.<\/p>\n
"Many of them (the clerics) then forget their roles in
\nthinking, for example, about how fertilizer can be made available
\ncheaply so that the prosperity of farmers and other people can be
\nimproved," he added.<\/p>\n
Similarly, Gus Mus urged all NU figures to prioritize their
\nroles in dealing with social and economic problems.<\/p>\n
The Sunday meeting also rejected growing calls for the NU to
\nhold an extraordinary meeting to elect a new chairman to replace
\nHasyim ahead of the meeting scheduled for November.<\/p>\n
These calls were just "emotional", Gus Mus said, while Masdar
\nsaid that the holding of an extraordinary meeting would further
\nincrease the political tension within the NU as outsiders could
\nbecome involved to the detriment of the overall situation.<\/p>",
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