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.