Hasyim warns of new communism
Hasyim warns of new communism
A leading figure within the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI),
Hasyim Muzadi, has warned Indonesians to guard against what he
calls the movement of New Communism. These "new communists" have
now, according to him, infiltrated other ideologies, but sooner
or later they will pop out as their real selves. They will
demonstrate cruelty to their fellow humans when they think this
will meet their political objectives.
Does Hasyim Muzadi believe that extremism, or even terrorism
may be coming from those groups of society disillusioned by the
current situation in the country and who have joined the
communist bandwagon?
What Indonesians are witnessing today is labor unrest
manifested in the frequent demonstrations by industrial and
landless farm workers in the capital city, demanding better work
conditions, and not all of them belong to Muslim extremist
groups.
By warning of a resurgence of communist activities, Hasyim
Muzadi seems to want to indicate that if there are still signs of
radicalism, extremism or even terrorism in the form of violent
demonstrations and bombing incidents in the capital city and
outside Jakarta, it should not be seen as a manifestation of
Islamic extremism. These incidents may be caused by regional
discontent or expressions of locally motivated social injustice.
The people's suffering seems to have increased, so has the
number of people living below the poverty line, while the rich,
as the jargon goes among the extremist elements, are getting
richer through either collusion or corruption. Reports are coming
in from the rural areas of people suffering from famine, while
most of the nation's leaders are thinking about how to save
themselves in the next general election two years from now.
Therefore, Hasyim Muzadi, should not only warn his countrymen
of the dangers of a resurgence of communism, but also should urge
the government to speed up its poverty eradication programs, for
poverty breeds extremism, radicalism, communism and terrorism
everywhere in the world.
GANDHI SUKARDI, Jakarta