Influential ulemas oppose planned ties with Israel

Influential ulemas oppose planned ties with Israel

JAKARTA (JP): Dozens of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) ulemas at the
Langitan Forum urged President Abdurrahman Wahid on Saturday to
cancel his plan to establish trade relations with Israel.

During their seventh gathering at Langitan Islamic Boarding
School in Tuban, East Java, they decided to dispatch Abdullah
Faqih and Sahal Mahfud to meet Abdurrahman personally to ask him
to drop his plan to establish trade ties with Israel.

They said that Abdurrahman should cancel the plan because it
had caused rifts in society.

In Jakarta, the Indonesian Muslim Students Front (KAMMI)
staged a massive protest rally on Sunday against the plan.

"We demand the government not to open any ties with Israel
because there are no benefits in it, both economically and
politically," said one of KAMMI's executives Fitra Asril, adding
that the government would only hurt Muslim feelings if it goes
ahead with the plan.

Opening any ties with Israel would mean a betrayal of the
fight of our Palestinian brothers, said Fitra. "Cooperation with
Israel means a betrayal of human values," he said.

The students gathered in the Al Azhar Grand Mosque in
Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, before marching to the Istiqlal
Grand Mosque in Central Jakarta. About 40,000 students joined the
10-kilometer march.

President Abdurrahman Wahid, who declared his intention to
open trade relations with Israel as soon as he was elected
president, has been opposed by Indonesia's Muslim community
because Israel is still occupying parts of Palestine.

"We hope Gus Dur first consults the People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) and the House of Representative (DPR) to discuss
certain important issues," Sahal from the NU was quoted by Antara
as saying.

Sahal stressed that the wrong decision made by President
Abdurrahman Wahid would directly affect NU and the people of
Indonesia.

The regular forum in Langitan was attended by five of the nine
key NU members from Central and East Java, including the acting-
host Abdullah Faqih, Sahal from Pati in Central Java, Aziz
Masyhuri from Jombang in East Java, Imron Hamzah from Surabaya in
East Java and M. Ali Haidar.

Langitan ulemas were among those who supported Abdurrahman's
nomination for president. Their opinions are highly regarded by
Abdurrahman. Faqih, chairman of the Langitan Islamic boarding
school, is a Muslim leader whom Abdurrahman regards as his guru.

Besides President Abdurrahman's plan to establish trade ties
with Israel, the ulemas also urged President Abdurrahman to deal
carefully with developments in Aceh and Ambon, and to reconsider
his decision to ask former Singaporean leader Lee Kuan Yew to act
as his economic advisor.

Meanwhile, political observer Emha Ainun Nadjib said on
Saturday President Abdurrahman's plan to open trade ties with
Israel would polarize the Indonesian people and disappoint his
supporters.

Considering the strong reaction from the people to his plan,
Abdurrahman should reconsider his plan before it creates new
problems, he told Antara after a meeting in Bandarlampung,
Lampung.

"I hope he was considering the plan simply as an option and he
will listen to the people's aspirations," he said, adding that
other Muslim countries had no ties with Israel.

Emha, who is also known as Cak Nun, admitted that trade
relations were different from diplomatic ties. However, he warned
that opening relations would bring more harm than good.

"He would be better off establishing trade ties with other
countries that offer more advantages and opportunities to
Indonesia," he said.

Cak Nun doubted that Abdurrahman would go ahead with his plan
considering the strong public opposition. "I promised I would try
to convince him about this matter. But I can't guarantee it
because I am just an outside player," he added.

Security officers in Jakarta rejected the Muslim students'
request to stage the protest in front of the State Palace.

Most of the male students wore colorful university jackets,
while the female students wore headscarves. The students kept
marching under heavy rainfall during the rally.

"If Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim nation, opens trade
ties with Israel, it means it acknowledges the existence of
Israel," said the students in a statement.

They also warned that opening commercial and trade ties would
jeopardize Indonesia's relations with other Muslim countries.

The students urged Muslim-based parties to withdraw their
members from the Cabinet should the government push ahead with
its plan to open trade ties with Israel.

Indonesian-Israeli trade ties don't only concern the matter of
trade, but also the life and death of a nation, the statement
said. (02/05)