Muslim leaders call for calm over int'l rhetoric on terror
Muslim leaders call for calm over int'l rhetoric on terror
Tiarma Siboro and Yogita Tahilramani, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta
Mainstream Islamic leaders have called on the country's Muslims
not to be became angered over U.S. Deputy Defense Secretary Paul
Wolfowitz's statements on the presence of suspected al-Qaeda
cells in the country, saying that all such allegations had yet to
be backed up by concrete evidence.
Hasyim Muzadi, chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU),
Indonesia's largest Muslim organization, said on Sunday that
Interpol, and the intelligence forces of the United States and
Indonesia, needed to build a "strong working relationship" in
order to gather solid evidence on the presence of al-Qaeda cells
in Indonesia.
"The job of the leaders of Muslim organizations in Indonesia
is to ensure that their organizations' followers are not easily
provoked or involve themselves in violence," Hasyim told The
Jakarta Post on Sunday.
The secretary general of the Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI),
Dien Syamsuddin, said on Sunday that the U.S. could not accuse
Indonesia of harboring international terrorists or single it out
as a haven for terrorist groups based on subjective perceptions.
"Unless the US has strong evidence to show that Indonesia is
indeed harboring international terrorists, the US must not point
the finger at Indonesia," Dien told the Post.
Wolfowitz had earlier said that the presence of suspected al-
Qaeda cells in Indonesia had led to a situation that created
"much more of a law enforcement challenge." He also said that he
did not rule out the possibility of joint military training for
counterterrorist operations involving Indonesian and U.S. forces.
Muslim leaders here fear that Wolfowitz's statements could
provoke a major backlash against U.S. interests in Indonesia, the
world's largest Muslim country, as many world Muslim leaders warn
that the harsh measures taken by the U.S. military in Afghanistan
could shift to a war against Islam.
Hasyim asserted on Sunday that military intervention by the
U.S. or "baseless" arrests of Muslim leaders in Indonesia without
adequate evidence would not be tolerated by the Muslim community
here.
"Any accusations or charges made by the U.S. regarding the
presence of terrorist groups in Indonesia must be proved first
before any action is taken," he said.
"Indonesia won't tolerate foreign intervention. That would
unnecessarily force moderate Muslims in Indonesia to take
radical measures."
Muhammadiyah Chairman Sjafii Ma'arief warned the U.S. on
Saturday to be prudent when dealing with Indonesia, and cautioned
the government against sacrificing the nation's sovereignty in
response to the worldwide antiterrorism drive, as certain other
countries had done in Sjafii's opinion.
He also said that the U.S. had failed to prove that its
persistent attacks on Taliban fighters and al-Qaeda members in
Afghanistan were effective in eliminating the terrorist network
led by Saudi Arabian businessman Osama bin Laden.
Indonesia has come under the spotlight in the war against
terrorism after a number of its citizens were arrested overseas
for alleged links to al-Qaeda.
Neighboring countries, such as Malaysia, Singapore and the
Philippines, have piled the pressure on Indonesia, accusing it of
not doing enough in the global antiterrorism drive by leaving
terrorists at liberty to pursue their ends.
Sjafii said that "none of these citizens have links to
international terrorist groups".
The image of Islam has worsened following the accusations by
the U.S. and other governments that Indonesian hard-liners, like
Hambali and Indonesian Mujahidin Council (MMI) Chief Abu Bakar
Ba'asyir, have facilitated the international terrorists who
attacked the U.S. on Sept. 11 last year.
"I also firmly believe that such hard-line groups here do not
have any connection with al-Qaeda," Sjafii said, referring to the
MMI and Laskar Jihad, led by Jafar Umar Thalib.
"These groups exist due to the government's uncertain policies
on the economy, politics, security and justice. If the government
manages to deal with these problems and maintain stability, I
believe that these groups will no longer be relevant," Sjafii
said.
In its efforts to promote an understanding of the role of
Islam in the development of a peaceful world, Muhammadiyah, the
second largest Muslim organization in Indonesia after the NU,
will hold a debate on 'Islam and the West' at its headquarters on
Tuesday.