Do something about radicals, Gus<\/p>\n
Mafoot Simon, The Straits Times, Asia News Network, Singapore<\/p>\n
If not for the gravity of the situation, Gus Dur's recent
\nremarks about Islamic radicals in Indonesia would have been
\namusing.<\/p>\n
While trying to downplay Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew's
\ncomments about the extent of Islamic radicalism in Indonesia,
\nformer Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid gave a figure
\nprobably closer to the real situation.<\/p>\n
Lee told the Far Eastern Economic Review recently that
\nInternet intercepts indicated that there were about 100 radical
\ngroups in Indonesia with a total of several thousand members.<\/p>\n
Criticizing Lee for being "wrong and naive" about the real
\nsituation, Gus Dur said, seemingly without any self-irony, that
\nthe actual number is small -- "about 50,000".<\/p>\n
He should know. After all, he's not only the former president
\nof a country with the biggest Muslim population in the world, but
\nalso head of the biggest Islamic group there -- the Nahdlatul
\nUlama (NU).<\/p>\n
Also, by his own admission in a column in the Indonesian
\nevening daily Sinar Harapan last Wednesday, he has a good feel of
\nthe Indonesian ground: He speaks directly to "the people" all
\nover Indonesia "three, four times a day".<\/p>\n
He says he realizes that he is making a grave accusation when
\nhe calls SM Lee's remarks "wrong and naive", especially since
\nthey come from someone of SM Lee's caliber.<\/p>\n
But here is his concern, he says: That because of Lee's
\ncaliber, his statements will be read by many, including
\ninfluential Western policy makers.<\/p>\n
For that reason, he said, Lee's statement must be corrected,
\nand immediately, lest it is taken as the "truth" by them.<\/p>\n
What is worrying though is that Gus Dur seems to suggest that
\nit is all right to have 50,000 radicals out of a total Muslim
\npopulation of 200 million in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He says: "The reality is the radical Islamic movement is not
\nbig, but it is willing to use force... Let's say the group is
\nmade up of 50,000 members. This figure is meaningless compared to
\n200 million moderate Muslims in Indonesia."<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman should know that whatever the numbers: 10,000 or
\n50,000 they are 10,000 or 50,000 too many.<\/p>\n
One cannot help but wonder if Gus Dur is choosing to ignore
\nthe carnage and havoc a small group of misled people can do to
\nproperties and lives.<\/p>\n
The thousand deaths in the New York bombing were caused by a
\nmere handful of people. Closer to home, the Bali blast killed no
\nperpetrator but hundreds of innocents.<\/p>\n
How much damage and carnage can 50,000 radicals inflict,
\nAbdurrahman?<\/p>\n
The former Indonesian leader may not be fond of Singapore:
\nWhen he was President in 2000, he launched into a tirade against
\nSingapore and its leaders, criticizing them for not being
\nsensitive to Indonesia's needs and for not doing enough to
\npromote the country's interest within ASEAN and the larger
\ninternational community.<\/p>\n
Those remarks could have been excused as political theatrics,
\nbut today he is no longer a politician fighting for survival.
\nWhat he has said about the radicals show an ignorance about the
\nthreat of terror in the region.<\/p>\n
So, what exactly is Abdurrahman up to?<\/p>\n
Early in the week he made those remarks Abdurrahman also told
\nreporters that he was willing to be nominated as President in the
\n2004 election if he got the blessings of, or was asked by, four
\nkiai sepuh (senior ulama) in NU, the organization he leads.<\/p>\n
There are many kiai sepuh, he said. And then he proceeded to
\nname four.<\/p>\n
"If they ask me, I will abide," he said.<\/p>\n
Let's hope Gus Dur, who once admitted he is crazy about wayang
\n(shadow puppet), is not playing one now. It is dangerous.<\/p>\n
Such talk runs counter too to the efforts by the Indonesian
\nauthorities to clip the wings of radicals and extremists in their
\nmidst.<\/p>\n
And it might even encourage the disbanded Laskar Jihad and the
\nDefenders of Islam Front (FPI) -- the two strongest radical
\ngroups -- to rise again.<\/p>\n
In fact, it might not be entirely wrong to conclude that the
\nemergence of such groups in the first place was possible because
\nmainstream and established leaders such as Gus Dur did not take
\ntheir threat seriously.<\/p>\n
As an Indonesian analyst friend puts it: The rise of IslamLib
\nin Indonesia was caused by the reluctance of established Muslim
\norganizations like the NU and the Muhammadiyah to speak up
\nagainst such extreme groups.<\/p>\n
A fatwa has been issued for the head of one key member of
\nIslamLib -- and a senior member of the NU -- Islamic scholar Ulil
\nAbshar-Abdalla.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman's remarks might also blur the line between
\nmainstream Islamic groups and those on the fringes.<\/p>\n
Worse, it might lend credence to the theory that this is a
\nclash between civilizations -- between the Judeo-Christian West
\nand Islam, an idea that seems to be gaining currency in the
\nUnited States.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman should know that as an influential religious
\nleader, he should do something -- and be seen to do something --
\nto help curtail radical groups.<\/p>\n
By doing nothing constructive, he might just send the wrong
\nsignal to these very radicals whose agenda remain fixed on an
\nunholy war.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman blames the Indonesian government for being
\n"afraid" of the Islamic radical groups.<\/p>\n
But should it not also be the role of the president of the
\nbiggest mainstream Muslim organization to chip in?<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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