House calls for rally-free month
JAKARTA (JP): With the fasting month of Ramadhan just two days away, the House of Representatives called on people to delay staging rallies in the legislative compound.
Chairman of Commission VI for human resources and religious affairs Ma'ruf Amin said the House compound should be free of any demonstrations to help legislators maintain the solemn atmosphere of the holy month.
"Without reducing democratic values, we urge the political elite and people in the grassroots to honor the holy month," Ma'ruf, who also chairs the advisory body of the National Awakening Party (PKB), said.
He suggested that the political elite refrain from making controversial statements during the fasting month. Controversy, he said, was feared to spark misunderstanding and social conflict.
He hoped people in the grassroots could avoid any actions which could hamper their fasting ritual, such as expressing anger and fighting.
"Let's conduct the fasting ritual in harmony and respect each other," Ma'ruf said.
A similar message was issued by influential Muslim scholar and leader of Nahdlatul Ulama's Syuriah law-making body Said Aqiel Siradj and Central Java NU chief Muhammad Adnan, who suggested that the political elite refrain from making offensive statements during Ramadhan.
"There is no significant dispute between NU and Muhammadiyah," Said Aqiel said, adding that all the nation's elements must join together ahead of Christmas and Idul Fitri instead of fighting.
Adnan further urged President Abdurrahman, a former NU chairman, and Assembly Speaker Amien Rais, the former Muhammadiyah chief, to meet and settle their differences.
"This is an important move to curb greater tension and dispute among their followers. I think they need to resolve it in a proper manner," he added.
As hostility between the groups supporting and attacking the President mounts, historian and rector of the Jakarta-based Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic Institute (IAIN) Azyumardi Azra called on both camps on Friday to stop staging mass mobilization which could end in violence.
"The legislative groups such as Nahdlatul Ulama (NU's) GP Ansor and its task force Banser and also its groups of opponents must avoid resorting to violence when dealing with current issues," Azyumardi told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of an international conference on Islam in Indonesia.
"Clashes between these groups will only reflect their failure to exercise democracy in Indonesia. We have to avoid political pressure which uses the physical power of mass," he said.
Such a dispute will tarnish the country's image, he said.
Tension or differences in opinions between groups of Muslims, such as between NU and Muhammadiyah are common, he said.
"Many think that Amien Rais has been too outspoken toward the President lately. This is actually a common process and we are not supposed to reply with violence," Azyumardi said.
Furthermore, the professor said it was difficult to predict the length of Abdurrahman's administration.
"With the Brunei and Bulog scandals and now Tommy's (Hutomo Mandala Putra) disappearance and reports of the President making a deal with Tommy, Abdurrahman will likely go through a rough time." (jun/edt/har)