'No place for extremists in Muhammadiyah youth poll

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Muhammadiyah Youth Organization is set to elect a new leader next month with Muhammadiyah chairman Ahmad Syafii Maarif hoping the election would help identify future statesmen in the country's second largest Muslim organization.

Syafii said the upcoming election in the Muhammadiyah youth wing should produce future leaders with statesmanlike qualities.

"They must have integrity and not be tempted by today's politics. It isn't easy," he said over the weekend.

He declined to name the candidates who had the best chance of winning in next month's election. "Candidates with the right qualities are rare, but we have some of them."

The election of the youth wing's chairman is seen as a grooming exercise for the future leaders of Muhammadiyah itself. Ninety years of age, Muhammadiyah claims some 30 million members, making it the country's second largest Muslim organization next to Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), which has about 40 million members.

The two organizations have long been vying to spread their influence, but have lately come closer in response to the rise in militant movements such as the Laskar Jihad and the Islamic Defenders' Front (FPI).

Muhammadiyah and the NU have agreed to jointly counter extremists, who they said were hurting Islam's image, while agreeing to also address the nation's moral crisis.

At its annual meeting earlier this year, Muhammadiyah decided to adopt "cultural propagation", which Syafii has described as spreading Islamic teachings by appealing to a broader audience in terms of cultural and religious backgrounds.

The election of the youth chairman itself will take place between July 7 and July 9 in Yogyakarta, with over 100 candidates from all over the country participating, according to the current chairman Imam Addarugutni.

"We are looking for candidates who are inclusive and accommodative because this is what's important in our pluralistic society," he said, adding he would decline accepting another four-year term as chairman, partly due to the fact that the age limit was 40.

On the challenges his successor would face, Imam said the most important was nurturing the creation of civil society.

"We must increase civilian participation vis-a-vis the government, and reduce the latter's role."

The organization's secretary-general Sudar Siandes said that future leaders should serve as examples for the nation in developing a civilized society.

To this end, he said future leaders must consider three goals.

"First, Muhammadiyah must get back to its original image of being an intellectual movement," he explained.

He said it was also important to develop leaders with a keen understanding of business as they would have to cope with the organization's funding needs.

Third, it was important to raise political awareness without getting mired in politicking. Sudar called for ethics in politics.

According to Sudar, Muhammadiyah must develop its influence in the country's political landscape, but should not allow itself to get dragged into day-to-day politics.

Asked whether Muhammadiyah members showed extremist leanings, he said there were very few, if any.

Chairman candidate Nadjamuddien Ramly said that the nation's moral crisis was a challenge for Muhammadiyah youth to address.

"The problems are those concerning good governance like removing the Indonesian Military from politics, battling corruption, collusion and nepotism, and upholding the supremacy of law," he said.

In tackling these issues, he explained, Muhammadiyah's youth must cooperate with other youth organizations regardless of their cultural or religious backgrounds.

"Muhammadiyah is a movement that must respond to the nation's problems," he said.