Islam's role in nationalism debated
JAKARTA (JP): Moslem leaders responded to charges that Islam and the powerful Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) spearheaded growing sectarian politics here, saying the religion unites, rather than divides, the country.
"Islam is the glue that helps bond the nation together," Dr. Amien Rais said during a discussion on Islam and nationalism on Saturday.
Indonesia, with its estimated 200 ethnic groups and 300 dialects, could easily disintegrate, he said. Islam teaches its adherents to have a strong sense of nationalism but at the same time avoid xenophobia, he added.
"As the dominant religion here, Islam helps us maintain nationalism amid such plurality," said Amien of Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta.
Leading proselytizer Hussein Umar from the Council for Islamic Propagation (DDII) said he found recent public discourses on the issue trying to polarize the Islamic movement on the one hand, and nationalism on the other.
"We should not make such a polarization," Hussein said, quoting recent remarks by the Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher.
He said that he sensed a certain "Islamophobia" among those who created a furor by suggesting that Islam promotes sectarian politics.
The former student activist during the chaotic 1960s defended ICMI against accusations of sectarianism. "Since ICMI was established, people are no longer ashamed to say that they're Moslem," he said.
The issue of sectarianism, he added, was simply new packaging for old accusations against Moslem activists. "They used to call us right-wing extremists or fundamentalists, now they call us sectarian or primordial groups," he said.
Out of their dislike of Islam, some people sought ways to undermine the solidly flourishing Moslem groups by blowing up the issue of Islam versus nationalism, he said.
Another former student activist, Eky Syahrudin, caused an uproar at the discussion when he refuted both Amien and Hussein's observations.
Economic motives
"No, it's not religion which holds a nation together," Eky asserted. "It's economic motives, the need for economic justice, which determine whether a group of people will stay together or fall apart."
The former member of the influential Moslem Students Organization (HMI) cited Pakistan, Russia and some Arab countries which adhered to the same religions and spoke the same languages, but ended up embroiled in economic disputes.
The question of who holds economic hegemony is even more important than the issue of religious leadership, he said. "Sure, Islam is big, but it should not claim to be representing the country," he said.
The issue of a Moslem sectarian movement has grown rapidly since late last year, following the success of various Moslem groups in pressuring the government to adopt certain policies which benefited the groups.
The abolition of the SDSB state lottery and the government's open support for many Islamic causes, including sending military observers to Bosnia-Herzegovina, were considered proof of Moslems' clamor for an enhanced role in the domestic political and social arenas. ICMI and its leaders have been charged as being the driving force behind these developments.
The Saturday discussion was held by HMI and the Institute for Moslems' Alms Management, and also featured senior political observer Deliar Noer and historian Taufiq Abdullah.
Taufiq said that throughout the country's history, Indonesian Moslems have always displayed a great awareness of national issues or nationalism. "Islam grew here through a series of reforms and changes," he said. (swe)