Amien warns of limits on emancipation

JAKARTA (JP): The chairman of the Muhammadiyah Moslem organization cautioned an Indonesian women's movement not to take the idea of emancipation too far, like their American counterparts have done.

Amien Rais, addressing members of Aisyiyah, the women's wing of Muhammadiyah, said Saturday that women should develop their full potentials according to their "dignity and nature".

Emancipation should not be taken to mean that women should be allowed to take part in such sports as boxing or wrestling, he said in a gathering to mark Aisyiyah's 82nd anniversary, held at the Senayan Sports Hall.

Women should stay away from alcoholic drinks, Ecstasy pills, cigarettes and other dangerous substances, he said.

Some 7,000 members of the group turned up for the celebration.

Amien said the women's chief role is in education, now all the more important than before for the nation as it faces the tough challenges from globalization.

Indonesia, he said, has recognized the need for women's emancipation long before the issue became a trend in the United States, pointing out the presence of women in Indonesian politics.

The women's movement in the West has taken the idea too far, he said.

He cited, as an example, the debate on abortion in America, where feminists join the pro-choice camp. Women's rights do not include their right to have an abortion, he said.

The Aisyiyah organization was founded in 1917 by K.H. Achmad Dahlan, who founded Muhammadiyah five years earlier. (07)