Groups decry Abdurrahman remark about Maluku strife

Groups decry Abdurrahman remark about Maluku strife

JAKARTA (JP): Muslim groups protested on Thursday President
Abdurrahman Wahid's remarks about the Muslim community in Maluku
and his proposal to lift the ban on communism.

No clashes were reported, but the rally by thousands of
members of various Muslim organizations in Jakarta raised tension
among the public. Many of the rally participants were armed with
swords, machetes and daggers, and they blocked off access to the
Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta.

After a brief meeting with the President, which the
representatives of the Muslim groups said was unsatisfactory, the
rally participants vowed to travel to the provinces of Maluku and
North Maluku, which have been wracked by sectarian clashes, and
stage a jihad.

"Just because he is the President, he cannot make any remark
he wishes," one of the rally leaders, Jaffar Umar Tholib, told
the crowd after the meeting.

The rally participants, mainly from the Ahlus Sunnah Wal
Jama'ah Communication Forum, initially gathered at Senayan
stadium, about six kilometers to the south of the Presidential
Palace, to celebrate the Islamic New Year.

After traveling from the stadium, the protesters encircled the
Presidential Palace complex, leaving the some 500 security
personnel helpless.

According to the protesters, Abdurrahman recently called
Muslims in Maluku "golden boys", while in fact the Muslim
community in the province has been the victim of acts of
violence.

The President said during a meeting at the palace last Tuesday
that the conflict in Maluku was basically due to the unfair
treatment the Christian community in Maluku suffered under former
president Soeharto's administration.

"Over the past 10 years, the government gave special treatment
to Muslims in Maluku, like golden boys," Abdurrahman said.

Eight of the protesters were allowed to meet with the
President. A few minutes later they emerged from the palace,
saying the President had become angry with them.

"He was angry. How can you talk to an angry man," said Ayib
Syafruddin Rahmat, chief of the Jihad Soldiers from Solo, Central
Java.

Acting State Secretary Bondan Gunawan told reporters the
meeting lasted only five minutes because the President had to
rest and was to receive acupuncture treatment later in the
afternoon.

Bondan admitted Abdurrahman became upset after one of the
protesters accused the President of acting however he wished.

He also said the representatives questioned Abdurrahman about
his plan to lift the ban on communism, and that the President
explained that "he's only responsible to the People's
Consultative Assembly, not individuals".

Dissatisfied with the meeting with Abdurrahman, Jaffar called
on the crowd to wage a jihad.

"Jihad is the final effort for Muslims to stop the Christians'
rebellion in Maluku," he said, inviting those in attendance to
take part in military training in Bogor.

Protests also hit Bandung and the West Sumatra capital of
Padang.

Around 1,000 students from the Persatuan Islam Islamic
Boarding School marched through the West Java capital of Bandung
to protest the President's plan to lift the ban on communism.

Quoting Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono, the spokesman
for the protesters, H. Atip Latiful Hayat, said communism would
not be vanquished if the ban was lifted. "Communism will survive
and blossom if given the opportunity."

In Padang, hundreds of student from the state-owned Islamic
Teaching Institute Imam Bonjol gathered to protest the proposed
lifting of the ban on communism.

"Gus Dur is becoming insensitive to what's happening in
society," one of the students, Alwi, said, referring to the
President by his nickname.

In Makassar, South Sulawesi, the chairman of the Crescent
Party (PBB), Yusril Ihza Mahendra, reiterated his opposition to
Abdurrahman's plan to lift the ban on communism, saying the move
would be unwise during the country's economic misery.

"The ban could probably be withdrawn after the people become
more prosperous. Now is the government's chance to inspire peace
among the people and encourage people to enforce the law and
repair our economy," said Yusril, who is also the minister of law
and legislation.

"Now our people are socially fragile. They are easily
provoked. In such a situation, communism could become a serious
threat," he said.

Amien Rais, speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly,
expressed his opposition to the President's proposal. Briefing
reporters in Yogyakarta on Thursday, Amien said he was certain
the Assembly's annual session next August would not support the
President's proposal to lift the ban on communism.

However, Said Aqiel Siradj, a member of the central executive
board of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the nation's largest Muslim
organization, said he supported the President's proposal.

"There will be no consequences for the country if the decree
is lifted," said Aqiel Siradj, a former aide to President
Abdurrahman, who is a former chairman of NU. (06/25/28/44/sur)