'Issues of social, political order a test for ICMI role'

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's contention with issues of social and political order will test the mettle of the Indonesian Association of Moslem Intellectuals and its role in the process of national development, a scholar said yesterday.

Nurcholish Madjid told a two-day discussion entitled ICMI and the face of Indonesia in the future that various changes in both the social and political structures and processes signify movement toward a new order as the older, colonial order fades away.

"The forward move cannot be prevented, because of the existence of a number of factors, especially in the form of the nation's success in education and economy," Nurcholish said.

The modern ideals of the nation -- justice, openness and democracy -- will soon become "urgent agendas for national social and political development", he said.

In this context, the values of the Indonesian Association of Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) will be determined by its role in the movement, he said.

The discussion was held in advance of the organization's second national congress, which will be staged at a cost of over Rp 2 billion (US$890,000). To be opened by President Soeharto in December, the congress will be joined by a total of 1,000 leading members.

Analysts say that incumbent chairman B.J. Habibie, who is also State Minister of Research and Technology, will most likely retain his position.

ICMI was established in 1990. It has since gone from strength to strength, obtaining not only the support of President Soeharto and cabinet ministers, but also community leaders across the country. The organization is considered to have great political clout and proponents say it is instrumental in helping usher in a new era of improved relations between the Islamic community and the government.

During yesterday and Saturday's discussions, ICMI, which has for some time been criticized as functioning merely as a "political vehicle" for interests groups, found itself to be the target of great expectations. Many, for instance, are now asking the organization to propel democratization, foster social justice and to be more sensitive toward the people's aspirations.

Conviction

In addition to Nurcholish, human rights campaigners Marzuki Darusman and Mulyana W. Kusuma, and former student activist Eki Syachruddin, all expressed their conviction that ICMI could do more in the interest of the nation.

Mulyana, who is the executive director of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation, said that ICMI, often dubbed as the product of "Islamic revivalism", is expected to contribute in the campaign to equip the nation with international standards for human rights protection.

"It should play a part in...realizing the development of human rights...and political reforms," Mulyana said.

Mulyana identified several other agendas that ICMI should consider in the near future, including ways to make progress on the much-debated issue of political openness.

"ICMI can start by launching the politics of tension-release, at least within the frame of de-escalating repression and restriction," he said.

The organization, currently led by bureaucrats, should also strive to widen political communication, review existing legal instruments, and examine the political control strategies of the state which repress human rights, he said.

"The proximity of ICMI to state institutions and, consequently, its stronger access to the power center, provides great opportunities (for it) to establish more comprehensive policies on human rights," he said. (swe)

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