NU concerned about growth of violence in 1996
NU concerned about growth of violence in 1996
JAKARTA (JP): Indonesia's largest Moslem organization
Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), which had members implicated in recent
religious tensions, expressed concern yesterday about the
increase of violence over the past year.
The central board of the 30-million-member NU issued its year
end evaluation yesterday which addressed the increase in violence
over the year and warned about its impact on the nation.
"We noted the increase in violence over the whole year," the
organization said in a statement co-signed by NU chairman
Abdurrahman Wahid and secretary-general Ahmad Bagdja.
The statement was read by deputy secretary-general Arifin
Junaidi. Attending was KH Ilyas Ruchiyat, the chairman of the
law-making Syuriyah arm of the organization. Abdurrahman was
absent.
The statement paid special attention to the July 27 riots in
Jakarta which claimed at least five lives, the Oct. 10 riot in
the East Java town of Situbondo that caused five deaths, and most
recently, the Dec. 26 unrest in Tasikmalaya, West Java, which
claimed four lives.
The two later riots, involving students from Islamic boarding
schools (pesantren) run by NU, were purely criminal, the
organization said, and did not erupt out of religious hatred.
"We agree with the Tasikmalaya authorities that the riot was
not directly linked to the pesantren," the statement said.
Earlier on, Abdurrahman Wahid had said only three santri
(students of the Islamic boarding school) were involved in the
riot. "Their involvement was insignificant, they were found only
throwing stones at the buildings," Abdurrahman said.
The organization called on everybody to place the national
interest above individual or group interests. It also called on
people to engage only in "political tradition based on ethics,
moral values, norms and with good manners."
The organization, which has strong support from the rural
population, called on the government to restore the civil rights
that have so far been denied: namely, the right to assemble and
to express opinions.
On the general elections, to be held on May 29, 1997, the
organization called for all members to vote. "The success of the
general election...will be measured by how every element of the
nation carries out his or her obligations well," the statement
said.
Nahdlatul Ulama also called for better law enforcement.
"Various...violent actions occurred because the law was not
upheld and people were not given a sense of security and safety,"
the statement said.
"The law was only used to protect certain groups in society
while neglecting others. The law has become a tool for those in
power." (imn)