Gumelar appeals to leaders' sense of responsibility

Gumelar appeals to leaders' sense of responsibility

JAKARTA (JP): Governor of the National Resilience Institute
Lt. Gen. Agum Gumelar appealed on Tuesday to the responsibility
of the political elite in preventing further turmoil.

It would be "highly dependent" on the will of the political
elite and public figures, he said, to help bring an end to the
"endless uncertainty of politics" while the people were
increasingly suffering.

"Does our moral responsibility still exist to help this nation
recover without differentiating from where we come from, our skin
color or our religion?" Agum asked, addressing a meeting between
religious leaders. He appealed to the religious leaders, who are
influential given Indonesia's "paternalistic and religious
society", to avoid "exploiting" followers.

He also reiterated the need for a national dialog given the
fear of more intense disturbances in the wake of next year's
general election.

The idea of such a dialog, he said, had not received an
adequate response, but the Institute would not impose the idea on
people. Agum was a speaker at a dialog sponsored by Gandi, the
new movement against discrimination, and a group called the
Communication Forum of the Nation's Unity, of which Agum is a
deputy on its advisory board.

The "big task" now, he said, was to unite various religious
components in a similar vision of nationhood. "Our love of this
nation alerts us to the fact that (the state motto) Unity in
Diversity cannot be realized through hidden or overt
discrimination," Agum said.

President B.J. Habibie has said that the idea to gather
leaders of different communities is far from easy, while
Minister/State Secretary Akbar Tanjung has said that meetings
between public figures -- such as when Abdurrahman Wahid, also
known as Gus Dur, chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama Islamic
organization, met Habibie at the latter's home on Saturday --
could be considered a national dialog.

Abdurrahman is one of four signatories of the Ciganjur
Declaration, named after his residence where the declaration was
drawn up along with Yogyakarta monarch and governor Sultan
Hamengku Buwono X, chairwoman of one faction of the splintered
Indonesian Democratic Party Megawati Soekarnoputri and Amien
Rais, chairman of the National Mandate Party.

Amien on Monday said that he hoped Gus Dur's meeting with
Habibie was not claimed to be on behalf of the other signatories
of the Ciganjur Declaration.

Speakers at Tuesday's dialog expressed fears of the use of
religion for political ends, especially following last month's
religious-related riots in Ketapang, Jakarta, Kupang, East Nusa
Tenggara and Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi. Donations collected at
Tuesday's dialog went to the renovation of destroyed churches and
mosques in Ketapang and Kupang, organizers said.

Other speakers included Catholic priest B.S. Mardiatmaja,
Mulyadi Wahono of the Buddha Nalanda School and Protestant priest
Eka Darma Putra. (anr)