Moslem student association's independence questioned
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Despite the absence of prominent speakers, the second day of the Association of Islamic Students (HMI) congress saw a lively discussion on members' concern over the organization's independence.
The proximity of some of Indonesia's Islamic organizations, including HMI, to the country's center of power, was among the topics discussed at the 21st congress of HMI.
Some participants cited a number of HMI alumni who were part of the government bureaucracy during a morning session attended by Syafii Maarif, a political historian of the Yogyakarta-based Teachers Training and Education Institute (IKIP) yesterday.
Syafii substituted for former HMI chairman Nurcholish Madjid and constitutional law expert Yusril Ihza Mahendra in the session.
A participant from Sorong, Irian Jaya, criticized the largest Moslem student organization for its failure to stand up to the government.
"HMI has kept quiet and has done nothing about government officials' misconduct," said the participant.
However, Syafii said there should not be any problem about the organization's closeness with those in power as long as its members were able to stand up and speak out.
Close ties should be inconsequential as long as HMI can still campaign for justice and the truth, he said.
The organization was established in Yogyakarta in 1947 and has seen its members grow in stature and become important public figures.
The congress also discussed the growing rift within the organization. Syafii offered to mediate if the organization's executive board asked him to. "I'm willing to act as mediator in HMI's internal dispute," said Syafii, who is also deputy chairman of the Muhammadiyah Moslem organization.
The leadership of HMI is currently divided into two factions. The government-recognized faction is led by Taufik Hidayat, but a group of activists recently set up a breakaway faction and called itself the Council of HMI Saviors.
Syafii, however, believed the rift would not pose a threat to the organization's existence.
"The dispute only affects HMI's leaders at the executive board level. It does not touch the association's chapters and branches," he said.
He said there was a harmonious relationship between the two disputed factions at the HMI Bandung chapter.
"Officials and members of the Bandung chapter meet and share ideas regularly. They do not quarrel as some people think," he said.
Some prominent speakers failed to appear in the second day of the one-week long congress. Besides Nurcholish and Yusril, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung and State Minister of National Development Planning Ginandjar Kartasasmita were also scheduled but failed to appear at yesterday's sessions.
Due to the speakers' absence, the organizers then idled the congress away for five hours. The same thing happened on the first day of the congress on Wednesday, when participants were left with nothing to do for six hours after the opening session.
As a consequence of the poor time management, the participants only started to discuss congressional regulations last night. The discussion on regulations had been scheduled for Wednesday evening.
Also yesterday, the congress organizers barred reporters from the venue.
The second day of the congress also saw interest groups distributing invitations for meetings, leaflets and statements, seeking the participants' sympathy and support for their chairmanship candidates.
The HMI Depok branch organized a press conference at nearby Pringsewu Park Restaurant last night, while some other "groups" held faction meetings within the Bimo Building.
The proposal of candidates for HMI's 1997/2000 chairmanship started to heat up yesterday. Names mentioned as potential chairpersons were Anas Urbaningrum, Viva Yoga Mauladi and Umar Husen -- all incumbent deputies to the HMI chairman. Also included on the list was Teuku Syahrul Anshari of the HMI Central Java chapter. (23/swa/imn)