NU joins camp opposing U.S. plan on Iraq

NU joins camp opposing U.S. plan on Iraq

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The country's largest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama
(NU) threw its weight behind protests against the United States'
reported possibility of an attack on Iraq, saying that presently
such an action lacked justification.

"We totally oppose a U.S. attack on Iraq... What would it be
based on? There's never been a clear argument from the United
States, even their allies oppose it," NU chairman Hasyim Muzadi
was quoted as saying by Reuters on the sidelines of a seminar on
terrorism on Thursday.

Hasyim, whose NU claims some 40 million members, said it would
protest any U.S. strike on Iraq, but did not elaborate.

His statement echoes protests made earlier this month by the
country's legislature and the second largest Muslim organization,
Muhammadiyah.

"I don't see that the planned attack will be a popular move
for the country (U.S.), because the U.S. doesn't have the moral
grounds to attack other countries, even if they are accused of
accommodating terrorists," Muhammadiyah chairman Syafi'i Maarif
has said.

Officially, Indonesian support for an attack is unlikely.

"Our position is in line with the UN perspective," Indonesian
foreign affairs spokesman Marty Natalegawa has said. "Which means
that we agree on peaceful settlements in dealing with disputes."

Concern has grown that the U.S might defy international
criticism and launch a unilateral attack on Iraq after U.S. Vice
President Dick Cheney this week called for preemptive action
because Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, and was willing to
use them against the U.S. and/or Israel.

Washington's traditional allies in Europe are growing uneasy
over the war plans, and Britain which has been a key supporter in
Afghanistan, is shying away from committing troops if any action
should be taken in Iraq.

On Thursday, a special envoy of British Prime Minister Tony
Blair hinted that London would seek UN authorization before
joining any attack.

"As the judge and the jury in this case, it is the United
Nations which should be the main pillar in a world based on law
and international cooperation," AFP quoted Peter Mendelson as
saying while he was on a visit to Indonesia.

"An international threat needs an international response not
isolating ourselves, not turning away and burying our heads in
the sand," said Mendelson, a close political confidante of Blair.

Many analysts believe an attack on Iraq would be imminent if
President Bush were to secure enough support from moderate
Muslims worldwide.

Earlier this month, visiting U.S. Secretary of State Colin
Powell promised Indonesia US$50 million worth of anti-terrorism
aid.

Powell also met with Indonesian Muslim leaders to gauge the
threat of terrorism in Indonesia, the world's largest Muslim
nation.

But he was told that anti-U.S. sentiment here stemmed from its
policies over issues like Palestine and that empowering local
moderate Muslims was a better way to thwart terrorism.

Indonesia has seen a surge of radicalism with the flourishing
of various Islamic organizations since the 1998 downfall of the
secular but iron-fisted regime of Soeharto.

The U.S. conquest of Afghanistan last year prompted thousands
of them to take to the streets in protest, as they considered it
an attack on Islam.

Lacking justification, an attack on Iraq is likely to trigger
similar reactions, if not worse.

Washington took issue with Iraq's refusal to allow UN
inspectors to check out Saddam Hussein's weapons factories. Many
have considered the refusal alone to be proof that weapons of
mass destruction are being produced.

While the UN is still trying to negotiate the issue, the U.S.
has apparently been preparing for an attack.

Unlike the gulf war in the early 1990s, international support
for another attack on Iraq, however is minimal. On Wednesday,
China and India led the opposition in Asia when they explicitly
warned against the use of force.

Only Australia has expressed support for the plan, distancing
itself further from its Asian neighbors, already uneasy with
Canberra's tough immigration policies.