Anti-Mega 'fatwa' deplored, called misuse of religion

Anti-Mega 'fatwa' deplored, called misuse of religion

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Yogyakarta

Political observers expressed discontent on Friday with a group
of Muslim clerics, who they said, misused religious teachings to
discriminate against a political candidate based on gender.

Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) acting chairman Masdar Faried Mas'udi
said the country's largest Muslim organization had ordered all
its clerics through the issuance of an edict (fatwa) to vote
against any woman candidate in the upcoming election. Incumbent
Megawati Soekarnoputri who was nominated by the Indonesian
Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), is the only woman in the
race.

"NU does not support particular presidential candidates. We
also ban the use of religion to discriminate against presidential
candidates on the basis of their gender or ethnicity," Masdar
told The Jakarta Post.

A number of senior NU clerics from East Java, including
Abdullah Faqih of Langitan in Tuban, Chotib Umar of Jember and
Chamid Abdul Manan of Madura, issued an edict on Thursday that
fully supports the decision of the National Awakening Party (PKB)
to endorse the candidacy of presidential and vice presidential
candidates under the banner of the Golkar Party, Wiranto and
Solahuddin Wahid.

In a clear reference to Megawati who teams up with Hasyim
Muzadi, the edict also forbids Muslims from voting for a female
candidate in the July 5 presidential election.

Hasyim has been non-active as NU chairman, while Solahuddin
has resigned as NU deputy chairman due to their new political
adventures.

The ulemas cited a verse in the Koran that stipulates that
"men are leaders of women" and a verse in hadits (Prophet
Muhammad's tradition) saying that a nation will be far from happy
under a woman leader.

Masdar said the verses suggest that men protect women and no
king or queen is entitled to absolute power.

"We should also take the social and historical contexts into
account. A president is not like a king or queen. We will clarify
the edict with the clerics," he said.

He recounted that NU issued a decree in a congress in Lombok,
West Nusa Tenggara in 1998, which stipulated that both men and
women had an equal right to lead the country.

The decree also stated that a leader should be judged based on
his or her capability and acceptability.

Separately, noted Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra regretted the
issuance of the edict, saying that it would create tension among
NU members.

"The edict will create friction in the NU. It's regrettable,"
Azyumardi, who is also rector of the Syarief Hidayatullah State
Islamic University, said in a workshop in Yogyakarta on Friday.

Even the PKB, which is endorsing Wiranto-Solahuddin, opposed
the edict.

PKB deputy chairman Mahfud M.D. said his party would not take
advantage of the edict because it was against the use of the
gender issue to discriminate against certain candidates.

"Although the edict might benefit our candidates, we will not
use it to woo support," Mahfud said.