Moslem activists establish 'New Masyumi'
Moslem activists establish 'New Masyumi'
JAKARTA (JP): Several Moslem activists braced themselves for criticism yesterday as they announced the establishment of Masyumi, a group with the same name as the defunct Islamic political party.
Ridwan Saidi and Agus Miftach described the "new" Masyumi as an "Islamic group which is loyal to the state ideology Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution".
"We are going to accommodate Moslem aspirations regardless of their backgrounds," Ridwan said.
Masyumi is an acronym for Majelis Syarikat Umat Muslimin Indonesia (the Indonesian Moslem Congregation).
The "old" Masyumi (Majelis Syuro Muslimin Indonesia), dissolved in August 1960 following conflicts with the Old Order administration under the late president Sukarno.
The "new" Masyumi currently has no chairperson, secretary general or other personnel.
However, Ridwan named a number of outspoken activists in the list of its "supporters". Among them were the sacked legislator Sri Bintang Pamungkas, environmentalist Indro Cahyono and soothsayer Permadi Satrio Wiwoho, chairperson of the largest Moslem organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Abdurrahman Wahid.
Supporters' names would be included as the group's personnel when it registered with the Home Affairs Ministry, he said.
Bintang said he had not been contacted previously by Ridwan but was willing to support any organization which was "anti- establishment".
The "new" Masyumi cannot be called a "mass organization" because it has yet to register to the Ministry of Home Affairs and obtain official approval. Like the "old" Masyumi the group uses stars and the moon as its symbol.
"This group, however, has no link whatsoever with the old Masyumi," Ridwan said.
Aspiration
The "new" Masyumi was established out of the need to "accommodate the aspiration of Moslem community that could not be contained by the existing organizations and political parties", Ridwan said.
The state recognizes only three political groupings -- Golkar, the nationalist Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) and the Moslem- based United Development Party (PPP).
"Who can guarantee that Golkar, PPP and PDI will last?" he said. "As Moslems, we trust that nothing is eternal except God. New Masyumi is an alternative for Moslems to face the unpredictable in the future."
Ridwan, a former legislator of the PPP faction and former chairperson of the Moslem Students Association (HMI), said the group was established because "Indonesian Moslems need a place which is free from manipulation".
Ridwan and Agus said the group would avoid involvement with existing political parties and would not choose Golkar, PPP or PDI to voice its political aspirations.
Ridwan said that one of the goals of the "new" Masyumi was to become a political party.
The group has also planned to hold its congress next year. "Let the congress then decide who's going to be the leader, what form of organization new Masyumi will be, or even what name the members want," Ridwan said.
Agus Miftach told The Jakarta Post that the "new" Masyumi would not develop into a group of Moslem fundamentalists, as it would be run by "moderate Moslems".
The government has not yet reacted to the new group. "We didn't receive any warning against establishing the new Masyumi," Agus said.
Agus said he and Ridwan were not copying other groups which have established new mass organizations using defunct organizations' names.
Two years ago the Indonesian Christian Participation Association (Parkindo) was established and was widely seen as a resurrection of the old Indonesian Christian Party, also abbreviated as "Parkindo".
Another organization formed last month called itself Indonesian National Unity (PNI). It was set up by a group of people identified with the Indonesian Nationalist Party, the initials of which were also "PNI".(01)