Moslems being put to the test: Scholar

Moslems being put to the test: Scholar

SURABAYA (JP): Moslems' recent growing clout in the domestic
cultural and political arenas is a challenge to be faced, scholar
Nurcholish Madjid said.

In a speech marking the 50th anniversary of the Association of
Moslem Students (HMI) here Saturday, Nurcholish said if Moslems
passed this particular challenge, they would fare very well.
Should they fail, however, they would fall into complete
disarray, he said.

"Moslems are presently being tested, with a good test, namely
their growing strength in the national arenas of culture and
politics," said Nurcholish, who is also former HMI chairman and
currently a member of the National Commission on Human Rights.

In his speech titled Renewing the Nation's Political Culture,
Nurcholish said Moslems should prepare for their test by holding
fast to their religious values. He said the current important
roles they play were not for the benefit of those in power but to
help Moslems in as objective a manner as possible.

"If President Soeharto gave his blessing to ICMI (the
Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals), it's not because
he pitied Moslems, but because Pak Harto read the situation well,
namely that there is a resurgence of intellectual thinking among
Moslems," he said.

"Moslems should take advantage of the situation, striving to
increase their role in society while protecting their religious
values. Otherwise, Moslems will be destroyed. If we tried to
advance by abandoning the faith, then that means we betray
Islam," he said.

Nurcholish called on the students, who make up the group of
intellectuals, to take charge. "Take initiatives, especially when
the opportunity is available," he said.

Separately, ICMI chairman B.J. Habibie denied charges that the
influential organization was politicking.

Opening a meeting of local ICMI branches in Banjarmasin, South
Kalimantan, Saturday, Habibie said the organization had not been
attempting to enter the domestic political arena as some people
had claimed. Instead, ICMI has been striving to use a cultural
approach to its activities, he was quoted by Antara as saying.

"I reiterate here that ICMI has not entered practical
political activities. Instead, through a cultural approach, ICMI
has been working to contribute more to national development," he
said.

Established as a social organization in 1990, ICMI has grown
in political stature and been often criticized for reportedly
dabbling in politics.

"ICMI does not always use a structural approach, for instance
through ministries, in its activities. Instead, it strives to
build our villages through technological advancement," he said.

Habibie pointed out how for the first 20 years he was working
under the President, he failed to develop Islamic traditional
boarding schools (pesantren) as centers of technological
development.

Things changed after he was elected ICMI chairman, he said.
"Only then could I move freely toward introducing technology to
the pesantren," he said. (25/swe)