A matter of faith

A matter of faith

If the Crescent Star Party (PBB) is a reflection of all
political parties in Indonesia which use Islamic symbols, then
the Islamic movement in this country still has a long way to go
before it can become a force to be reckoned with. PBB ended its
congress on Monday by reelecting Yusril Izha Mahendra as
chairman, but not before losing 18 disgruntled party leaders who
now plan to form a breakaway party. Instead of expanding and
strengthening, PBB now finds itself smaller after its congress.

It is essentially the pattern of the Islamic political
movement in this country, which is constantly dividing into
smaller and smaller groups. Almost all are built around
individual leaders rather than the ideology or teachings of the
religion they claim to represent.

These parties frequently use Islamic symbols in wooing
supporters and voters, but only rarely the moral teachings,
including the message of peace, which the religion promotes. Some
even appear to endorse militancy, reflected by their failure to
condemn the declaration of jihad in Maluku by an Islamic group in
Jakarta last month. One cannot help having the strong feeling
that these political parties are simply vehicles for ambitious
politicians to further their agenda.

Not surprisingly, their appeal among the electorate is waning,
evident in the June general election. Of the dozens of political
parties which used Islamic symbols, only the United Development
Party (PPP) made a significant showing, coming a distant third
after the two secular-nationalist forces, the Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and the Golkar
Party.

PBB, claiming to be the torchbearer of the once-great Masyumi
Party which led the Indonesian Islamic political movement in the
1950s, barely made it into the top eight election finishers. In
contrast, Islamic parties led by Masyumi polled 46 percent of the
total vote in the country's first democratic elections in 1955.

Islamic politics is a fact of life in this predominantly
Muslim nation and Islam has its part to play in the country's
political arena. Islam can make a valuable contribution to the
nation-building process and Islamic political forces should serve
as effective sparring partners for secular-nationalist groups. So
far, however, because of constant infighting, proponents of
Islamic politics continue playing a marginal role in state
affairs, even after Indonesia became a democracy in 1998.

The one time the Islamic parties were truly united since then
was when they combined to form the "axis force" with the National
Mandate Party (PAN) to deprive PDI Perjuangan chairwoman Megawati
Soekarnoputri of her rightful claim to the presidency. The
coalition, however, was not strong enough to present candidates
from within its ranks. It settled for Abdurrahman Wahid, from the
minority National Awakening Party (PKB), who was elected
president in October. Megawati became vice president.

It was the lone occasion when Muslim political parties showed
their capacity to unite. Their sole contribution to the process
of building democracy in Indonesia was in rallying for a common
negative cause -- blocking Megawati's path to the presidency --
rather than something constructive. Since then, the coalition
members have rarely spoken in a single voice on any issue.

Whether Islam as a political force continues to be relevant to
the country will depend largely on the present leaders of the
political parties which use religion as their symbol. They can
learn a thing or two from the various Christian political parties
in secular Europe that still command large followings.

These parties must have clearer platforms and goals that are
acceptable to a wider spectrum of society. They will be much
better off incorporating the moral values and teachings of Islam
into their platform instead of clinging to religious symbols.
Stating the establishment of an Islamic state as their goal will
only fuel separatist sentiment in regions where Islam is not the
dominant religion. That is a sure recipe for disaster, if not for
the party, then undoubtedly for the nation. The parties must also
shed their exclusivism and open their membership to non-Muslims,
the same way Abdurrahman's PKB has done. Most important of all,
they must end their infighting and endeavor to act in unison.