Megawati's bid suffers setback<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Abdurrahman Wahid, Amien Rais, Nur Mahmudi
\nIsmail and Hamzah Haz agreed on Saturday that Islam bars women
\nfrom becoming heads of state, delivering the heaviest blow yet to
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri's presidential bid.<\/p>\n
The four politicians -- respectively the founder of the
\nNational Awakening Party (PKB), the chairman of the National
\nMandate Party (PAN), the president of the Justice Party (PK) and
\nchairman of the United Development Party (PPP) -- acknowledged
\nfor the first time that the predominately Muslim country may not
\nbe ready to accept a woman president. The four men had never
\npreviously mentioned that Megawati, whose party the Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) now looks set to
\nwin largest share of the vote in the polls, might not be accepted
\nby some Muslim elements.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman, the chairman of Indonesia's largest Islamic
\norganization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), visited Amien Rais at the
\noffice of Muhammadiyah, which Amien used to chair. The two
\nleaders then agreed that both organizations respected an Islamic
\nruling that women cannot become heads of state.<\/p>\n
Shortly afterward, Nur Mahmudi visited Amien, while
\nAbdurrahman met with Hamzah Haz at the Nahdlatul Ulama
\nheadquarters, according to Antara.<\/p>\n
\"If Megawati was elected (president), the Islamic movement
\nwould not accept her, but if she's not elected, there's no
\nguarantee the situation would be better,\" Abdurrahman said after
\nmeeting with Hamzah. \"It's really a dilemma. Which is why we held
\nthose consultations to seek a solution.<\/p>\n
\"The meetings are for consultations regarding the post-
\nelection situation, where a new configuration is emerging after
\nMegawati's party looks set to win,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Amien said Indonesia was being divided into two camps, one
\nsupporting Megawati and the other supporting incumbent President
\nB.J. Habibie.<\/p>\n
\"There's this image that if Megawati is elected (people) will
\nrebel, and if Habibie is elected, there will also be rebellion.
\nWe should find a way out of this dilemma. I see Gus Dur as
\nstanding outside of this polarization, which is why we held that
\nconsultation,\" Amien said.<\/p>\n
Nur Mahmudi supported Amien's statement.<\/p>\n
Separately, at a press briefing with Hamzah, Abdurrahman said
\nhe personally supported Megawati for the top job, but that he
\nmust answer to Nahdlatul Ulama ulemas, many of whom still abide
\nby Islamic rules that a woman cannot become president.<\/p>\n
\"Personally, I think it's possible for Megawati to be elected,
\nbut regarding questions about her ability to govern, that's
\nanother matter.\"<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman once supported suggestions that Soeharto's eldest
\ndaughter Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana succeed her father to the
\npresidency.<\/p>\n
Abdurrahman has long been known as Megawati's closest ally
\nand even her mentor, but after a meeting last week with Habibie,
\nhe hinted that support for Megawati might no longer be
\nforthcoming, because he could not guarantee that ulemas would
\naccept her presidency.<\/p>\n
\"If Megawati is elected, the United Development Party (PPP)
\nwould not agree to join the administration,\" he said.<\/p>\n
However, Abdurrahman promised on Saturday to seek a \"win-win
\nsolution\".<\/p>\n
When asked whether the meetings also discussed the possibility
\nof an alternative presidential candidate, Abdurrahman said: \"That
\nis confidential. I must not talk, or everything will fail.\"<\/p>\n
Military<\/p>\n
When journalists suggested the possibility of naming a
\nmilitary man as the next president, Abdurrahman said: \"Let's hope
\nnot.\"<\/p>\n
Despite Abdurrahman's statement that ulemas did not support
\nMegawati's presidency, so far there has been no unified stance
\namong Muslim clerics.<\/p>\n
Some 200 ulemas in East Java, for instance, recently aired
\ntheir reluctance for a woman president. But on Saturday, in the
\nCentral Java town of Rembang, an open gathering of the Forum of
\nNational Pesantren Ulema stated they would accept whoever was
\nelected to the position.<\/p>\n
Attended by some 100 ulemas, the forum said \"in the event of a
\ndifficult political decision, we should seek a choice with the
\nleast disadvantage\".<\/p>\n
The nominated president would be accepted \"as long as (the
\ndecision) was for the good of the nation and as long as the
\npresident was elected by the peoples' representatives\".<\/p>\n
Central Java was one of the key provinces where political
\nparties fiercely competed for Muslim votes. In provisional
\nresults of the poll tallies, PDI Perjuangan won in the province.<\/p>\n
The Muslim clerics stated that in regard to the presidential
\nelection they would look to \"prioritize avoiding risks and the
\nthreat of a greater loss\", and in this context the forum said
\ngender was not an issue.<\/p>\n
The forum was initiated by Nahdlatul Ulama leaders, including
\nCholil Bisri and Mustafa Bisri. Attendants included ulema from
\nJava, Madura, Bali and Sumatra. Prominent clerics were Hasyim
\nMuzadi, who chairs East Java's NU branch, Amien Makruf of Jakarta
\nand Mbah (Grandfather) Lim from Klaten, who was once described as
\nAbdurrahman's spiritual advisor.<\/p>\n
The ulema called on all Indonesians to support \"total reform
\nand political democratization, and show that support by
\nexpressing a more mature attitude\" in politics and as citizens.<\/p>\n
Calls based on religion to support political interests were
\nfarcical, the forum said.<\/p>\n
Mustafa told The Jakarta Post the struggle for power \"has
\ndrowned the most basic goal of the reform movement, which is to
\nreach democracy... and to save the people from the muddy hole of
\ntrouble gripping almost all spheres of life\".<\/p>\n
As of 8:30 p.m. Saturday the PDI Perjuangan was leading with
\n22.67 million votes. Golkar came a far second with 11.85 million
\nand PKB third with 11.04 million.<\/p>\n
As of 5 p.m. PDI Perjuangan had earned 67 seats in the House
\nof Representatives and Golkar had gained 33 seats. PKB won 32
\nseats and PPP had 14. Others had not reached the threshold of 2
\npercent of the 462 contested seats.<\/p>\n
On Friday in Semarang, PPP announced it had ruled out the
\npossibility of forming a coalition with any of the major parties
\n-- front-runner PDI Perjuangan, PKB, PAN or Golkar.<\/p>\n
A PPP leader, Karmani, said PPP would be better off playing
\nthe role of a \"strategic opposition\". (swe\/har)<\/p>",
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