Hasyim clarifies his statement on Jamaah Islamiyah

Hasyim clarifies his statement on Jamaah Islamiyah

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Nahdlatul Ulama chairman Hasyim Muzadi and the United States
Ambassador to Indonesia Ralph L. Boyce agreed on Wednesday that
terrorism was not associated with a particular religion as it
could happen anywhere and target anyone.

They also agreed that Indonesia and the U.S. were both
affected by terrorist threats in a major way and therefore needed
to continue to work together.

The meeting came against the backdrop of Hasyim's
controversial statement on Saturday that Jamaah Islamiyah (JI),
an al-Qaeda-linked organization operating in Southeast Asia, did
not exist. Al-Qaeda was blamed for the attack on the U.S. on
Sept. 11, 2001, while JI was accused of masterminding the Bali
bombings on Oct. 12, 2002 and JW Marriott Hotel blast on Aug. 5
of this year.

"There has been some confusing statements (made by Hasyim) in
headlines of several print media which recently said that JI did
not exist. So I want to seek clarification and hold a regular
meeting to clear the confusion.

"People might think that terrorism is not a serious problems.
Indeed, terrorism is a very serious problem," Boyce said in a
joint press conference with Hasyim.

The meeting took place at NU's office on Jl. Kramat Raya in
Central Jakarta. Australian Ambassador to Indonesia David Ritchie
and a member of the European Parliament, Hartmut Nassauer, each
held a separate meeting with Hasyim later in the day, also on
terrorism.

NU boasts 40 million supporters, making it the country's
largest Muslim organization.

Hasyim's remarks came amid a wave of disappointment among
Indonesian Muslim moderates in the country with the U.S., dating
back to April when the U.S. attacked Iraq for allegedly
possessing weapons of mass destruction. Washington so far has
failed to prove its allegation.

The U.S. policy regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict has
soured relations between the U.S. and Muslim countries

Vice President Hamzah Haz recently branding the U.S. "the king
of terrorists", forcing foreign minister Hassan Wirayuda to
contain a possible diplomatic snafu resulting from the statement.

Ritchie said after meeting with Hasyim that he understood
Hasyim's stance.

"When Hasyim said that Jamaah Islamiyah did not exist in
Indonesia, ... what he meant was a terror organization calling
itself Jamaah Islamiyah.

The UN has listed JI as a terror organization.

Meanwhile, Nassauer said that learning from the situation in
the East and West, he believed that terrorist network did exist
and was not merely targeting the United States, but also other
countries.

Nassauer even admitted that some terrorist operatives were
residing in Germany.

Hasyim suggested that the controversy be stopped, saying such
a dispute would only be counterproductive and weaken efforts to
combat terrorism.

"We should focus on acts of terror and radicalism, instead of
trying to connect JI or any other organization with terrorism. To
associate Islam with terrorism is injurious to all religious
followers. It tarnishes the image of Islam, and undermines our
national interests," he said.