'NU feels Gus Dur is being ousted'<\/p>\n
CILEGON, Banten (JP): The Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Muslim
\norganization would accept ikhlas (sincerely) the reality that
\nAbdurrahman \"Gus Dur\" Wahid be deposed from power only if the
\nincumbent were to be replaced via a constitutional political
\nprocedure, chairman Hasyim Muzadi said on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\"If Gus Dur is removed via a constitutional process, I think
\nthere would be no resistance from the grassroots.<\/p>\n
\"But, NU's kyais (religious leaders) feel that Gus Dur is
\nbeing 'ousted' by force and by unfair means. So, the kyais think
\nthat they have to defend the President, not because he is Gus
\nDur, but as part of the effort to fight tyranny,\" Hasyim told
\nreporters after the closing of NU's three-day plenary meeting
\nbefore dawn on Sunday.<\/p>\n
The meeting, which discussed NU's internal affairs and the
\ncountry's latest political situation, issued seven taushiyah
\n(recommendations), including the kyais' approval of a plan to
\nimpose stern measures against bughot (\"political rebellion\"),
\ncalls for a jihad (holy war), and the planned istighotsah (mass
\nprayer) on April 29 in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The three-day meeting concluded that the discussion of bughot
\nmust be seen in terms of armed activities by the country's
\nseparatist movements. The movements, NU said, are not the sole
\nresponsibility of the government, but also of the political
\nelite.<\/p>\n
The meeting, however, rejected the planned use of violence, or
\ncalls for NU members to join a jihad to defend Gus Dur until
\ntheir death, but underlined that such a move was responding to
\nthe move by Gus Dur's political opponents to topple him.<\/p>\n
Hasyim said the country's worsening situation had its roots in
\ntwo major elements -- Gus Dur's perceived weaknesses and the move
\nby the political elite to accelerate his downfall.<\/p>\n
\"As an example, they (members of the political elite) have
\ncaused disorganization within the country's legal and economic
\nsystem. Such a maneuver was a precondition for the President's
\ndownfall,\" he said, but did not elaborate.<\/p>\n
The move, however, only caused suffering among the people,
\nparticularly when the elite used force, violence and
\nunconstitutional means, he said.<\/p>\n
Hasyim, who claimed to have repeatedly criticized Gus Dur on
\nmany occasions, voiced his concern that the ongoing political
\nbickering had caused disunity, particularly among the Muslim
\ncommunity.<\/p>\n
When reminded that the pressure on Gus Dur to resign had come
\nfrom the Muslim community, Hasyim said: \"they were Muslims but
\nthey did not perform their religious obligations...they even
\nmixed religion with politics.\"<\/p>\n
Hasyim said the dispute among the Muslim community could not
\nbe simplified as NU against Muhammadiyah (a Muslim organization),
\nciting that the dispute was an attempt by the old guard to return
\nto the political arena.\"<\/p>\n
The old guard, he said, used unlimited funds to buy whatever
\nthey needed, including power.<\/p>\n
Concerned about the conflict among the Muslim community,
\nHasyim said that he and several Muslim leaders, such as Muslim
\nscholar Nurcholish Madjid and Muhammadiyah chairman Syafi'i
\nMaarif, held periodic meetings and had come to the conclusion
\nthat the conflict had been stoked by some Muslim figures who had
\nused Islamic symbols to divide the people into pro and
\nantigovernment camps.<\/p>\n
\"Some Muhammadiyah members disagreed with the political moves
\nby its top figures, but they were reluctant to express their
\nopinion,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Hasyim said that a peaceful approach, through dialog, was an
\nalternative way of settling the political dispute.<\/p>\n
\"If the peaceful approach is unsuccessful...which means that
\nthe current state leadership has failed to carry out the mandate
\ngiven by the people, we must therefore return the mandate to the
\npeople by holding an accelerated general election,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"Through an accelerated general election, polarization at the
\ngrassroots level would melt away as it would have no more grounds
\nto continue the conflict.<\/p>\n
\"The general election could hopefully 'erase' the desire of
\ncertain members of the political elite to seize power for their
\nown interests,\" Hasyim said.<\/p>\n
When asked if he doubted the capability of Vice President
\nMegawati Soekarnoputri to replace Gus Dur should the latter
\nresign, Hasyim said, \"If Megawati were to replace Gus Dur, she
\nwould have to deal with the mountain of problems that already
\nexists, and it would be her turn to face all the criticism\". (02)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nu-feels-gus-dur-is-being-ousted-1447893297",
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