'NU feels Gus Dur is being ousted'

CILEGON, Banten (JP): The Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Muslim organization would accept ikhlas (sincerely) the reality that Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid be deposed from power only if the incumbent were to be replaced via a constitutional political procedure, chairman Hasyim Muzadi said on Sunday.

"If Gus Dur is removed via a constitutional process, I think there would be no resistance from the grassroots.

"But, NU's kyais (religious leaders) feel that Gus Dur is being 'ousted' by force and by unfair means. So, the kyais think that they have to defend the President, not because he is Gus Dur, but as part of the effort to fight tyranny," Hasyim told reporters after the closing of NU's three-day plenary meeting before dawn on Sunday.

The meeting, which discussed NU's internal affairs and the country's latest political situation, issued seven taushiyah (recommendations), including the kyais' approval of a plan to impose stern measures against bughot ("political rebellion"), calls for a jihad (holy war), and the planned istighotsah (mass prayer) on April 29 in Jakarta.

The three-day meeting concluded that the discussion of bughot must be seen in terms of armed activities by the country's separatist movements. The movements, NU said, are not the sole responsibility of the government, but also of the political elite.

The meeting, however, rejected the planned use of violence, or calls for NU members to join a jihad to defend Gus Dur until their death, but underlined that such a move was responding to the move by Gus Dur's political opponents to topple him.

Hasyim said the country's worsening situation had its roots in two major elements -- Gus Dur's perceived weaknesses and the move by the political elite to accelerate his downfall.

"As an example, they (members of the political elite) have caused disorganization within the country's legal and economic system. Such a maneuver was a precondition for the President's downfall," he said, but did not elaborate.

The move, however, only caused suffering among the people, particularly when the elite used force, violence and unconstitutional means, he said.

Hasyim, who claimed to have repeatedly criticized Gus Dur on many occasions, voiced his concern that the ongoing political bickering had caused disunity, particularly among the Muslim community.

When reminded that the pressure on Gus Dur to resign had come from the Muslim community, Hasyim said: "they were Muslims but they did not perform their religious obligations...they even mixed religion with politics."

Hasyim said the dispute among the Muslim community could not be simplified as NU against Muhammadiyah (a Muslim organization), citing that the dispute was an attempt by the old guard to return to the political arena."

The old guard, he said, used unlimited funds to buy whatever they needed, including power.

Concerned about the conflict among the Muslim community, Hasyim said that he and several Muslim leaders, such as Muslim scholar Nurcholish Madjid and Muhammadiyah chairman Syafi'i Maarif, held periodic meetings and had come to the conclusion that the conflict had been stoked by some Muslim figures who had used Islamic symbols to divide the people into pro and antigovernment camps.

"Some Muhammadiyah members disagreed with the political moves by its top figures, but they were reluctant to express their opinion," he said.

Hasyim said that a peaceful approach, through dialog, was an alternative way of settling the political dispute.

"If the peaceful approach is unsuccessful...which means that the current state leadership has failed to carry out the mandate given by the people, we must therefore return the mandate to the people by holding an accelerated general election," he said.

"Through an accelerated general election, polarization at the grassroots level would melt away as it would have no more grounds to continue the conflict.

"The general election could hopefully 'erase' the desire of certain members of the political elite to seize power for their own interests," Hasyim said.

When asked if he doubted the capability of Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri to replace Gus Dur should the latter resign, Hasyim said, "If Megawati were to replace Gus Dur, she would have to deal with the mountain of problems that already exists, and it would be her turn to face all the criticism". (02)