NU and the question of leadership
NU and the question of leadership
The 30-million member Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) socioreligious organization grabbed headlines this week. Abu Hasan, who lost the NU chairmanship race in December 1994, has since created a rival board to challenge the incumbent leader Abdurrahman Wahid, popularly known as Gus Dur. The Jakarta Post asked Aswab Mahasin, a social and political observer, for his comments on recent developments within NU.
Question: What do you think of the rival NU congress that was held last Wednesday in East Jakarta and its implications for NU leadership?
Answer: Support for Gus Dur remains strong. The influence of Abu Hasan's move on this large organization is negligible. It is like a minor earthquake.
Moreover, official statements from the minister of security and defense, the home affairs minister and the Army chief have said they only recognize the board set up at the 1994 conference. In other words, the official voices do not support Abu Hasan at all. Without external support the rival congress will have difficulties moving ahead.
Q: What do you think of the government's reluctance to interfere in the dispute?
A: I think it is very good. It would be very wrong if the government supported the rival congress. By stating that it only recognizes the 1994 NU board, the government has put itself in a constitutionally-correct position. By doing so the government also killed rumors that it has given tacit support to Abu Hasan.
Q: What about the reported rift in relations between Gus Dur and the government?
A: Official voices cannot be interpreted directly as a support for Gus Dur. The fact that Gus Dur's request to meet with the President has so far not been approved still gives rise to many questions.
However, independent of all that, what is taking place between Gus Dur and President Soeharto is a personal problem, I think, not a political one. And Gus Dur himself has stated his readiness to apologize for a comment he made in a foreign publication, which I feel was just a slip of the tongue.
Q: Abu Hasan claimed that two-thirds of NU's leaders were present at his congress. What do you think?
A: That is what he says ... there is no proof. NU congresses are generally full and would never be that 'deserted'. Besides, the election of the chairman in the congress lasted only 20 minutes. Such a thing is not likely to happen within a genuine NU congress.
Q: How do you read this congress?
A: The reality is that the so-called rift within NU is really just a small tremor. If the rival congress is said to have divided NU, this is also not true because the majority of NU's members are still behind Gus Dur.
Q: What is the best way to solve the issue?
A: I don't think reconciliation is an issue because one board is constitutional and the other is not. So a solution must come from NU.
Q: How?
A: NU leaders are planning to punish those who set up the unconstitutional board. The measure may be administrative or otherwise.
Q: But Abu Hasan is convinced that the government will recognize his rival board.
A: I do not see it that way, unless President Soeharto decides otherwise.
Q: So what state is NU in now?
A: It is still manageable and there is no reason to be worried.
Q: Abu Hasan has charged Gus Dur of giving room to Shiite teachings while NU adheres to Ahlussunnah wal jamaah teachings. Do you believe this?
A: That is a rumor. Gus Dur could not have encouraged Shiite teachings because it is outside his political interests. Shiism is a branch that submits to the view that a leader must be a direct descendant from Prophet Muhammad. It is only a matter of speaking with Shia followers, not accepting their teachings.
Gus Dur is a very tolerant person, he is willing to communicate with anybody. Except for the leadership issue, Shiite teachings are the same as Ahlussunnah wal jamaah teachings.
Gus Dur is a charismatic leader. There are a number of things which have made him that way.
First, his thoughts are advanced, so advanced that the majority of his followers are often taken by surprise. Second, he is the grandson of NU's founder and his knowledge of religious matters has been acknowledged by the great Islamic scholars. He is well versed in the great books which form NU's convictions.
Third, the support he enjoys from the masses, including that of the great scholars, is strong. So strong that he has been given the honor of hadratus syaikh, or venerated leader. And fourth, he is always present at critical moments with measures and statements which often manage to reduce tension, as in the (religious blasphemy) case of Arswendo Atmowiloto. Also when Information Minister Harmoko made a slip of the tongue while performing at a recent shadow puppet play.
Q: How do you see NU's future?
A: NU will remain powerful and a factor to reckon with. It is unthinkable that politics in this country would exist without NU's presence. (swa)