Gus Dur is for Soeharto's renomination

JAKARTA (JP): Prominent Moslem scholar Abdurrahman Wahid yesterday promised to give his support if the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) decides to reelect President Soeharto in 1998.

The chairman of Indonesia's largest Moslem organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) told a gathering of some 1,500 ulemas that he agreed with President Soeharto that the most important thing in the national leadership succession is not who will sit at the nation's helm, but whether the process takes place constitutionally.

"Which is why NU will support Pak Harto if the factions of the People's Consultative Assembly choose him. It's not a matter of who, the most important thing is the Assembly's (decision)," he said at a meeting of Rabithah Ma'ahid Islamiyah, an association of NU Islamic boarding schools (pesantren) held at the Genggong Pesantren in Probolinggo, East Java, on Sunday evening.

He was speaking about the need for ulemas to retain their independence even in the face of an onslaught of visits or aid from parties outside the schools. Aid should not influence the ulemas when deciding their stance over many issues, including politics, he said.

There is nothing wrong with receiving aid, in financial or in other forms, but it should not be to the detriment of the schools themselves, he said.

"If you receive aid which is not needed by the pesantren, it will ruin the schools' reputation so badly that people will abandon you," he was quoted by Antara as saying.

"Remember, Pak Harto himself has reminded us not to expect too much from the government," he added.

Abdurrahman Wahid, better known as Gus Dur, leads Forum Demokrasi, a loose association of government critics. He was reelected chairman of NU in Dec. 1994 and since then had not been invited for a formal audience with President Soeharto, a tradition for newly elected or reelected leaders of social and political organizations.

Observers had taken this as a sign that Abdurrahman did not have the President's blessing. However, on Saturday, President Soeharto opened the NU pesantren meeting after warmly taking Abdurrahman's hand and walking with him to the dais.

Despite his critical stance on many government policies, Abdurrahman Wahid had in the past repeatedly voiced support for Soeharto. Last year, for instance, he predicted Soeharto would retain power in 1998 because he was skeptical that the People's Consultative Assembly would elect a new president in 1998.

On another occasion, he said NU, which has strong loyalty from some 30 million people, would defend President Soeharto against any attempt to unseat him by unconstitutional means.

Not only that. NU will serve as a buttress for the incumbent President. "If necessary, two million NU followers will take to the street and protest against anybody who tries to harm President Soeharto," he said last June. "Never doubt the loyalty of this organization toward this nation."

Next year, Indonesia will hold its seventh general election. In 1998, the 1,000-strong People's Consultative Assembly will convene, elect a president and vice president, and prepare the broad guidelines for state policies. As the convention draws near, public discourse on national leadership intensifies.

The ruling Golkar last month drew up a list of criteria for the next president. The criteria includes a requirement for the person to be able to take decisions during difficult times.

Yesterday, House Speaker Wahono welcomed Golkar's criteria and said it could be used as input for the nation when it decides to choose its leaders.

Addressing a plenary session to mark the opening of the House of Representatives second hearing session for 1996/1997, Wahono said that Golkar's nine point criteria for presidential elections meets the future's challenges. (swe/ste)