Gus Dur: A controversial, visionary leader<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Muslim scholar Abdurrahman Wahid, Indonesia's
\nnewly elected president, has always been a controversial
\npolitical figure. His rise to power against all odds attests to
\nhis substantial staying power.<\/p>\n
Considered a dark horse before Wednesday's presidential race,
\nGus Dur, as he is popularly known, was nominated by a small
\nfaction in the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), and many
\npeople thought he stood little chance of winning the nation's top
\njob.<\/p>\n
With president B.J. Habibie's last minute withdrawal on
\nWednesday morning of his candidacy, the election turned into a
\ntwo-horse race between Abdurrahman and Megawati Soekarnoputri,
\nwhose own nomination Abdurrahman had earlier supported and
\nendorsed.<\/p>\n
Most political analysts had also discounted his chances
\nbecause of his ailing health and poor eyesight.<\/p>\n
Even as Abdurrahman recently paid visits to Europe and the
\nUnited States in order to seek medical treatment, many believed
\nhe had little chance of becoming Indonesia's next president.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman left his acceptance of the presidential nomination
\nto as late as Monday, a move which confused the National
\nAwakening Party (PKB), the party which he helped found and which
\ncontrols 51 seats in the legislature.<\/p>\n
The PKB had earlier promised to support Megawati.<\/p>\n
This is not the first time that Abdurrahman has surprised the
\npeople, or his own supporters, and as he takes charge of the
\nworld's fourth largest country, it is likely that there are many
\nmore surprises in store for the nation.<\/p>\n
He is a controversial and at times unpredictable figure.<\/p>\n
As chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), a Muslim organization
\nwith some 30 million followers, Gus Dur often went against the
\ncurrent in order to defend a personal principle.<\/p>\n
He showed his mettle in the early 1990s when he spoke harshly
\nagainst the rise of sectarian politics, which was fanned by the
\nestablishment of the Association of Indonesian Islamic
\nIntellectuals (ICMI), then chaired by Habibie.<\/p>\n
His strong stance put him at odds with most other Muslim
\nleaders in the country. He ruffled more feathers when he
\nestablished a rival group to ICMI, the Forum for Democracy, which
\nrecruited intellectuals from various religions.<\/p>\n
Ironically, his nomination in Wednesday's presidential
\nelection was largely initiated by Islamic parties, the very
\nmovements he criticized nine years ago.<\/p>\n
His political vision nevertheless transcended the interests of
\nhis own NU organization, and, at times, even that of Indonesia.<\/p>\n
He earned the wrath of the government and fellow Muslim
\nleaders when he accepted a seat in the Yitzak Rabin foundation
\nand again when he suggested initiating diplomatic ties with
\nIsrael.<\/p>\n
His formidable reputation was shaped by his staunch criticisms
\nof president Soeharto's regime. But he was also quick to forgive,
\nas he showed when he visited the ailing former president and when
\nhe called on the public to forgive the former ruler.<\/p>\n
Early this year, he initiated a plan to establish a truth and
\nreconciliation commission similar to one in post-apartheid South
\nAfrica. Now as president, he will be in a better position to
\ncarry out his plan.<\/p>\n
Gus Dur was born on Aug. 4, 1940, in Denanyar, Jombang, East
\nJava, to one of the country's most influential families of Muslim
\nleaders. His grandfather, Hasyim Ashari, was one of the greatest
\nMuslim leaders at the turn of the century. His father, Wahid
\nHasyim, was minister of religious affairs in 1945.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman followed a family tradition of studying in many
\npesantren, (traditional Islamic boarding school). His name \"Gus
\nDur\" draws on a rich cultural tradition from his area, in which
\nlocal people confer on the son of an elite family the title
\n\"Gus\".<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman later moved to Baghdad, Iraq, and studied
\nliterature and social studies in the Department of Letters at the
\nuniversity in Baghdad. His student days coincided with the coming
\nto power of Iraq's Saddam Hussein's Baath, or Socialist Party,
\nwhich attracted many followers.<\/p>\n
As a knowledge-starved college student, Abdurrahman quickly
\nlearned the precepts of socialism. The Soeharto regime
\nsubsequently leveled baseless allegations at Abdurrahman,
\naccusing him of being a member of the Baath Party.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman returned to Indonesia in 1974 and began his
\nscholarly career by writing columns in Tempo magazine. The
\ncolumns soon became one of the most favorite items in the
\nmagazine.<\/p>\n
By the end of the 1970s, Abdurrahman had established himself
\nas one of Indonesia's most respected scholars and was in high
\ndemand as a public speaker. He undertook serious social research
\nand other studies. He also developed a reputation as an excellent
\nspeaker and his collection of jokes always attracted an avid
\naudience.<\/p>\n
It was not long before Indonesians began referring to
\nAbdurrahman as budayawan, which literally means a \"culturalist\"
\n-- a term that refers to someone who is considered a scholar in
\nthe field of cultural studies.<\/p>\n
As a first-class scholar -- an achievement that in his later
\ncareer has been neglected -- Gus Dur entered political life when
\nhe was elected in 1984 chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama.<\/p>\n
His progressive vision of Islam contrasted with the
\ntraditionalist, rural outlook of the Nahdlatul Ulama, and at
\ntimes he was at odds with the senior scholars of the
\norganization.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman's criticisms of the Soeharto regime, for example,
\ngo against the NU's tradition of cooperating with the
\nauthorities. He nevertheless managed to win their trust and kept
\nhis chairmanship for three five-year terms.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman's election to the presidency means he will have to
\nrelinquish his NU chairmanship, a move he already had planned for
\nnext month.<\/p>\n
If Abdurrahman took NU out of practical politics in 1984, he
\nwas also the one who brought the organization back into politics,
\nfollowing the establishment of the National Awakening Party last
\nyear. The move was specifically to further the group's political
\ninterest.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman thoughts and, sometimes, his actions, often spark
\ncontroversies. One of his most controversial remarks was when he
\nseriously, or jokingly, issued a statement that the Arabic and
\nIslamic greeting Assalam alaikum (peace be unto you) be replaced
\nwith Indonesian words. The statement provoked immediate anger
\namong many ulama.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman was forced to make an apology over the issue
\nbefore he could continue his leadership in NU. On many occasions
\nduring the last years of Soeharto's New Order, Gus Dur was in the
\nforefront of defending minority groups. Many people, including
\nnon-Muslim Chinese, accused him of being closer to the minorities
\nthan to the Islamic community itself.<\/p>\n
Following a stroke in February 1998, Abdurrahman fell into a
\ncoma. Brain surgery saved his life, but Abdurrahman Wahid was ill
\nfor months, a condition that aggravated his eye problems.<\/p>\n
From the early 1990s, Abdurrahman's eyesight deteriorated
\nrapidly, and by the end of the decade he was almost blind. There
\nare speculations that his health problems are genetic and are
\ncaused by the close blood ties of his parents.<\/p>\n
Gus Dur is married to Sinta Nuriyah and has four daughters:
\nAlisa Qotrunada, Zannuba Arifah, Anisa Hayatunufus and Inayah
\nWulandari.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/gus-dur-a-controversial-visionary-leader-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}