PDI Perjuangan agrees to Islamic law in Aceh

JAKARTA (JP): In a surprising move, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) unexpectedly expressed acceptance of the implementation of Islamic law in Aceh, backing down from a previous statement it had issued earlier.

PDI Perjuangan deputy chairman Roy B.Janis said on Tuesday that there were no more problems in the implementation of Islamic law as the country had acknowledged it for decades in several aspects of daily life.

"Actually, the country had already implemented Islamic law especially in marital and probate laws. Not just in Aceh, but in all parts of the country, so we should not make a problem out of this," Roy said in a media briefing after the party's weekly- meeting.

He further underlined that in Aceh the implementation of Islamic law had already been decided by Law No.44/1999 so there was no need for further discussion on the matter.

"What is important for PDI Perjuangan is that the implementation of Islamic Law in the province will not present a threat to the unitary state and should strengthen our country," Roy remarked.

Last week, the largest party in the country indicated that it would reject Islamic law saying that it was against the basic principles of the country as mentioned in the 1945 Constitution, the state ideology of Pancasila and the principles of a unitary state.

It was a very unpopular decision as many see the implementation of Islamic law, as demanded by the Aceh people, to be one of the possibilities of winning over the hearts of the Acehnese and to calm their call for freedom.

President Abdurrahman Wahid also blasted the decision saying that the government will go ahead with the implementation of the law despite opposition from PDI Perjuangan.

Islamic law is stated in the Special Autonomy draft of Aceh Nanggroe Darussalam that is currently being discussed by the House of Representatives special committee.

The proposed draft also gives the province wide authority in security, financial and legal matters.

However, PDI Perjuangan did not provide further elaboration as to how the draft actually proposed to cover the wide range of aspects for implementation that would include financial and legal aspects as the current Law No.44/1999 only allows the province to implement Islamic law in social, educational, religious and cultural fields.

When asked if PDI Perjuangan agreed to the implementation of Islamic Law, Roy said, "Agreed...there is no problem whatsoever."

He even said that the party's earlier statement might have been made in a different context and not regarding the implementation of Islamic law. (dja)