MUI calls for 'jihad' to protect country

MUI calls for 'jihad' to protect country

JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Ulemas Council concluded its
three-day congress by calling on Moslems to wage a jihad (holy
war) alongside the government and the military to protect the
country from political and economic pressures.

"As the majority in the population, we are obliged to maintain
the nation's unity and protect it from irresponsible groups and
foreign conspiracies," chairman Hasan Basri said at the closing
ceremony here yesterday.

Quoting a verse from the Koran, he said: "Whoever fights in
the name of Allah the Almighty shall be guided toward the right
path."

Basri stressed that Indonesian Moslems should play an active
role in lifting the nation out of its present predicament.

He said each Moslem could fight against the economic crisis by
ignoring baseless rumors and calls for illegal actions.

"Our true enemies are the speculators and hoarders (of staple
commodities) because they continue to weaken the economy," he
said.

Responding to the influential body's call, a prominent figure
of the Moslem organization Nahdlatul Ulama, Ma'ruf Amin, said the
jihad included fighting against poverty and the shortage of basic
commodities.

Amin said the Moslem leaders agreed that the present situation
should be considered a national crisis and that the true enemies
of the Moslem community were the negative impacts of the crisis,
such as increased poverty.

He said the jihad should be seen as a fight against
irresponsible groups, such as speculators and those who circulate
rumors.

The secretary-general of the Indonesian Islamic Propagation
Council, Hussien Umar, said the call for jihad reflects Moslem
concern over the present situation in the country.

"Jihad has a broad meaning. In this context, it is a response
to the present condition. It is our positive response to efforts
to overcome the country's problems," he said. (swe)