Ibas urges BKMT to champion women's aspirations through parliament
Deputy Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Edhie Baskoro Yudhoyono (Ibas) has encouraged the Badan Kontak Majelis Taklim (BKMT) to strengthen its social role and champion women’s aspirations through communication and collaboration with parliament.
“This means that BKMT’s aspirations have many doors through which they can be fought for in parliament. Our task is to make those doors interconnected,” Ibas said in his statement in Jakarta on Friday.
Ibas made the remarks during a national gathering with the BKMT Central Board in Jakarta on Wednesday (26/8), which discussed a number of issues relating to community needs.
According to Ibas, BKMT’s aspirations cover the fields of education, health, women’s empowerment, social protection, MSMEs, the people’s economy, and family resilience.
He assessed that BKMT possesses social capital through its network of majelis taklim in various regions, which can be developed to support community empowerment and broaden the benefits of government programmes.
“BKMT is a place where knowledge meets service. A place where women meet strength. Therefore, we must be ready to synergise and ready to collaborate,” said Ibas.
“This is not merely a formal meeting. This is a meeting of hearts. This is a national gathering. More importantly, this is an opportunity to listen to one another, to strengthen one another, and to think together about what we can do for Indonesia,” he said.
Several members of the Democratic Party faction in the House of Representatives (DPR RI) then put forward ideas for collaboration in line with their respective areas of work.
Member of Commission VIII of the DPR RI Nanang Samodra offered the involvement of women and female religious teachers (ustazah) within majelis taklim circles as halal certification facilitators for MSME actors.
“The women of the majelis taklim have the opportunity to become halal facilitators, helping MSME communities process their halal certification through self-declaration,” said Nanang.
“Quranic teachers are among the informal workers whom we can facilitate. The contributions are affordable, but the scope of protection is highly beneficial in the event of a work accident,” he said.
Member of Commission X of the DPR RI Bramantyo Suwondo saw opportunities for cooperation in the fields of education, Islamic outreach (dakwah), and the development of halal tourism.
“As the country with the largest Muslim majority, the focal point of halal tourism should be in Indonesia. This is something we can work on together,” he said.
Meanwhile, Member of Commission XI of the DPR RI Marwan Cik Hasan emphasised strengthening the family economy through MSMEs and cooperatives.
“We strengthen their spirituality and faith, but we also strengthen their economy,” said Marwan.
“BKMT’s voice must continue to be conveyed. We will ensure that its aspirations, views, and input become part of the effort to realise the goals of the state: to protect the entire nation, to advance the general welfare, and to enlighten the life of the nation,” said Ibas.
He invited BKMT to strengthen collaboration and deliver more solutions for the community.
“Let us not enlarge problems every day. Let us enlarge solutions. Challenges remain, but there are opportunities if we unite,” he said.