Muhammadiyah prepares for congress<\/p>\n
By Santi WE Soekanto and Wisnu Pramudya<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Leading members of Muhammadiyah will gather
\ntomorrow in Banda Aceh to prepare for their 43rd congress,
\nbracing themselves to face a host of issues more important than
\nthe recent hullabaloo about who's going to be next chairman.<\/p>\n
The 83-year old reformist Moslem organization will hold its
\ncongress from July 6 to July 10, with President Soeharto opening,
\nand Vice President Try Sutrisno closing the Rp 2.6 billion (US$
\n1.2 million) gathering.<\/p>\n
Some 3,850 leaders and 20,000 supporters of the organization
\nare expected to share in the bustle and festivities in the
\nenchanting, historical capital of the Aceh province, through
\nwhich Islam was first brought to the archipelago centuries ago.<\/p>\n
The organizing committee has decided to hold a number of
\npreliminary meetings on issues of national importance, such as
\neducation, the haj pilgrimage, and ways to revitalize Moslems'
\nentrepreneurship, as well as gender-related programs for its
\nwomen organizations, Aisyiyah and Nasyiatul Aisyiah.<\/p>\n
The meetings are expected to tackle the nitty-gritty details
\nof establishing programs for the next five years and have them
\nready for adoption by its congress.<\/p>\n
One meeting of great importance: the tanwir (law making body)
\nmeeting will be held tomorrow, to select 39 candidates out of
\nmore than 100 registered chairman candidates. This list will be
\nshortened further, to 13, during the congress; the last batch
\nwill then convene and decide among themselves as to who will be
\ntheir top man.<\/p>\n
Despite the similarly important nature of its other meetings,
\nthe issue of chairmanship has been overshadowing all other
\ndiscussions. Analysts, activists, government officials and
\npoliticians have been busy contributing to the debate about
\nwhether incumbent Amien Rais should stay, or which leader is a
\nbetter replacement.<\/p>\n
However, there are identifiable patterns in the public debate
\nover who will be entrusted to carry out the legacy of
\nMuhammadiyah founder, KH Ahmad Dahlan.<\/p>\n
The first of these themes has to do with whether the
\norganization, whose original goal is to purify the practice of
\nIslam in Indonesia, needs an intellectual leader more than it
\ndoes a traditional ulema.<\/p>\n
The question has emerged because, for the first time,
\nMuhammadiyah's leadership is dominated by people who can be
\ncalled intellectuals.<\/p>\n
Chairman Amien Rais, for instance, holds a doctorate in
\npolitical science from the Chicago University in the U.S. Though
\nhis education was Islamic, (he conducted his research at the Al
\nAzhar University in Cairo, Egypt), he comes across more as what
\nmany people would call intellectual, rather than what is
\ntraditionally described as a turbaned ulema.<\/p>\n
The fact that he's already a leading figure in the government-
\nbacked, and powerful, Association of Indonesian Moslem
\nIntellectuals enhances the image. It's very probable that the
\ncompetition for chairmanship would revolve around this issue,
\nbecause the current elites and chairman aspirants come from very
\ndiverse backgrounds.<\/p>\n
Some of the most frequently mentioned names, such as Din
\nSyamsuddin, Lukman Harun, Muqoddas, Syafii Maarif, Yahya
\nMuhaimin, Sutrisno Muchdam, Rusjdi Hamka and Prodjokusumo, may
\ndisclaim interests to sit at the helm, but the fact that each one
\nhas a different background and supporters promises that the
\ncontest will be a lively one.<\/p>\n
A number of people have tried to be helpful by delineating
\ncriterions for suitable figures to lead the organization.
\nHowever, this has sparked even more debate because some people
\nwere offended at being pigeonholed.<\/p>\n
Lukman and Din were upset because they were categorized by
\npolitical observer Afan Gaffar as only seeking financial and
\npolitical gains from Muhammadiyah. Amien, on the other hand,
\nbecame uncomfortable because he was classified as a loyalist,
\nthus considered to merit the top seat.<\/p>\n
What's interesting from these discourses, for an observer to
\nbe able to predict who's likely to come out as winner, is that
\nnot one person mentioned appears to have adequate backing from
\nthe majority.<\/p>\n
There are also related questions about whether Muhammadiyah
\nwill be able to keep its promise to stay out of politics, despite
\nthe many external attempts to drag it into the arena, or to
\nindependently keep its distance from the power circle, without
\nnecessarily having to be an opposition.<\/p>\n
Government officials have repeatedly said they would not
\nintervene in the organization's internal affairs, nor would they
\nfavor one chairman aspirant over another. Leaders of a political
\ngrouping have also said the same thing.<\/p>\n
However, the claims and counter-charges have left the
\nimpression that the Muhammadiyah congress would indeed be marked
\nwith external pressures.<\/p>\n
As one observer said, \"The government might not interfere, but
\nit would be likely that the ruling Golkar party and the Moslem-
\nbased United Development Party (PPP) wish to play their hands in
\nthe congress\".<\/p>\n
The fact that Din has a leading position on the Golkar
\nexecutive board and Rusjdi Hamka is the chosen man of PPP
\nleaders, to head the conflict-ridden Jakarta branch of the party,
\nonly fuels the speculations on external intervention.<\/p>\n
A number of analysts, as well as Muhammadiyah leaders, have
\ntried to explain the organization's position on the issues. One
\nobserver described the organization as a partner of the
\ngovernment, another said it could not be completely independent
\nbecause its leading members, including Amien Rais, are much too
\nclose to the power center.<\/p>\n
One observer predicted that this proximity would soon cost
\nAmien his outspokenness. Amien, who grabbed nationwide attention
\nin 1993 when he proposed public debates on presidential
\nsuccession, would probably be meek.<\/p>\n
Should Amien win the chairmanship election, the organization
\nmight also lose its independence, Nazaruddin Syamsuddin, from the
\nUniversity of Indonesia, said.<\/p>\n
Congress participants would also have to deal with an issue
\nwhich is even more important: the direction and approaches that
\nMuhammadiyah should take in facing the next century.<\/p>\n
Some people have said the socio-education organization used to
\ndeserve its label as a reformist--but not anymore.<\/p>\n
In almost any of its activities, a critic said, the current
\nMuhammadiyah has failed to come up with fresh, creative ideas.
\nEven in its thousands of schools across the country, Muhammadiyah
\nhas not introduced a specific curriculum of its own, the way it
\nused to.<\/p>\n
\"It's probably because general conditions now differ from the
\nearly years of Muhammadiyah, but this should mean that the
\norganization has to come up with even brighter ideas,\" political
\nobserver Deliar Noer said.<\/p>\n
As for its claim as a reformist, sociologist Mochtar Naim said
\nthat since independence in 1945, Muhammadiyah has never presented
\na drive toward reform. Instead, it now only copies whatever
\ntrends or policies are in force, he said.<\/p>\n
\"The strength of Muhammadiyah now lies in the fact that it has
\nbecome a good follower,\" Mochtar said. \"It's playing it safe.
\nThat's not the way to act if you're a reformer. In order to
\nbecome one, Muhammadiyah should be brave enough to go it alone,
\nto go against the current.\"<\/p>\n
Amien said that the upcoming congress would be strategic in
\nnature because it would be the last congress the organization
\nwill hold this millennium. It would discuss ways to prepare its
\nmembers for the greater challenges that the 21st century will
\nbring, he said.<\/p>\n
With all these questions to be handled, it's obvious that the
\ncongress' participants will have their hands full next week.<\/p>",
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