Muslim students reject Megawati

JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of Muslim students in Ujungpandang, South Sulawesi, took to the streets on Monday voicing their rejection of Megawati Soekarnoputri's presidential bid.

The demonstration took place at about the same time that hundreds of locals gathered in Medan, North Sumatra, to express their support of the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) by compiling thumb prints in blood.

The young detractors of Megawati burned tires and shouted slogans as they marched along Jl. Urip Sumoharjo toward the office of the South Sulawesi provincial legislative council where they unfurled a large banner that said: "Mega Yes, President No!"

Student leader Anas Ahmad said they wanted the legislators and the provincial delegation to the General Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) to heed their aspirations. "They should at least campaign so we can have a (Muslim) president," he said.

Megawati's detractors have often questioned her religious affiliation.

Another group of Muslim students held a similar demonstration at the Free West Irian Monument, also in Ujungpandang.

In Medan, hundreds of supporters gathered on Jl. Jamin Ginting in the Padang Bulan area to give their thumb prints in blood. One enthusiastic supporter even made prints of all his fingers, pricking them with a needle one by one.

"I am her supporter, I want her to 'ascend' during the general assembly," said the supporter, a driver by the name of Rizal T.

Organizer Ahmad said that by Monday afternoon, some 500 prints had been collected on an 8-meter-long piece of white cloth.

Similar expressions of support had been made earlier, including one in the Central Java capital of Semarang where some 2,000 people collected their signatures on a long red banner, and in Jakarta on Sunday, where hundreds of people signed a long banner reading "Megawati or Revolution".

The secretary of the North Sumatra chapter of PDI Perjuangan, Taufan Agung Ginting, said the prints collection was "like a referendum and proof that the people want her to be president".

A similar demonstration of support was voiced by about 100 women activists from various towns on Java, who gathered on Sunday in Yogyakarta. Led by the wife of PDI Perjuangan executive Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno, the group read a pledge of loyalty to Megawati.

They unfurled a banner that read, "Rise, oh Indonesian women, your time has come."

Soetardjo, who also attended the rally, said it would be an injustice if Megawati failed to become president because she was a woman. He believed there was no religious teaching against a woman being president.

"Of 24 million Megawati supporters, some 90 percent are Muslims," he insisted.

Another Megawati aide, legal expert Dimyati Hartono, said on Sunday in Semarang, Central Java, that PDI Perjuangan's commanding lead in the provisional poll results reflected the people's support for Megawati.

"This controversy about her presidency should really stop," he said.

Megawati has been facing the greatest challenge yet to her presidential bid, namely resistance from Muslim groups who believe Islam bars a woman from heading an administration.

The opinion of the Muslim groups, however, was far from uniform. Hundreds of ulemas from one group -- Indonesia's largest Islamic organization Nahdlatul Ulama -- have been split over the matter.

In the East Java town of Kediri, for instance, ulemas gathering at Lirboyo pesantren (boarding school) selected several respected Muslim scholars among them to say the special istikharah prayer for divine guidance on the matter of Megawati's presidency.

Nahdlatul Ulama's local leader, Ali Maschan Moesa, said in Surabaya that the forum on religious matters, begun on July 10, could not be concluded yet because the ulemas believe none of the existing presidential candidates meet their criteria.

"Which is why we asked some ulemas to say the prayer so Allah could help us make the best decision," Moesa said.

Moesa said he believed the ulemas were no longer making an issue out of Megawati's gender because they believed there were great differences between a president and Islamic caliph.

A caliph in Islam, for instance, bears all of the executive, legislative and judiciary power, while a president holds only the executive power, he said, hinting at the possibility of eventual support for Megawati.

The Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) was among the first Islamic organizations that reminded Muslims to choose political parties that fight for "national interests and that field Muslim legislative candidates".

The council was soon blasted by many people who thought it was attacking PDI Perjuangan, which fielded non-Muslims for 60 percent of its legislative candidates. Another critic was Nahdlatul Ulama chairman Abdurrahman Wahid, who accused the council of meddling in politics and overstepping its boundary.

However MUI chairman Ali Yafie said the council was merely carrying out its moral responsibilities toward Muslims. (27/30/40/44/har/nur/swe)