Ramadhan this year a time for hope

Muslims around the world are observing Ramadhan, the month in which they perform their holy obligations. Indonesian Muslims have greeted the fasting month with hope for a better future after the many traumatic incidents of the recent past. More stories on Page 3 and Page 6.

JAKARTA (JP): When the new crescent moon became visible last Thursday, almost 200 million Indonesian Muslims warmly welcomed the holy month of Ramadhan.

Muslims must fast from dawn until dusk for a month until a new crescent appears on the western horizon, marking the start of the post-fasting Idul Fitri festivities.

Throughout Ramadhan, there is a deep sense of exhilaration among Muslims even though they have to refrain from eating, drinking, sexual relations and other worldly activities through the daylight hours. Muslims are also required to control their emotions, as well as enhance their religious devotion and sense of social solidarity.

Fasting during Ramadhan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar, is one of the five sacred duties known as the pillars of Islam.

The others prescribed by the Koran are the profession of faith (syahadat), the ritual prayer performed five times daily (salat), alms for the poor (zakat) and the pilgrimage to Mecca, the haj, to be undertaken at least once in a lifetime for those who are financially capable.

Some Muslims are exempted from fasting, for example the sick, travelers and women who are pregnant, breast-feeding or menstruating. Those engaged in heavy physical work, or jobs which require a great degree of concentration, are also excused.

Each Ramadhan holds new meaning for Indonesian Muslims, and particularly in 1999.

Although the country's multidimensional crisis is still sputtering, people can see some shimmering light of hope at the end of the dark tunnel. With a new and more legitimate government, they expect they can wipe out the foreboding cloud which has blackened the country's skies for more than two years.

And this year's Ramadhan in Indonesia has also been marked by the absence of differences among Muslim leaders concerning when the fasting month should start and end, a sensitive issue which often sparked conflicts among the faithful in the past.

Mahdali, a Blue Bird taxi driver, is among those who are upbeat about this year's fasting month.

"I feel that this year's Ramadhan is much better than last year. I have more customers than last year, maybe because the economic situation is getting better. For me, more customers mean better income."

He hopes the government will tightly control prices of basic commodities, which usually soar during major celebrations of Idul Fitri, Christmas and New Year's.

Housewife Sariyani, 32, is also feeling better about life. Her unemployed husband has landed a job as a mechanic, and the burden of making ends meet has been lifted.

"I remember how I had to sell all my gold jewelry to buy a sack of rice, our daily needs and milk for my toddlers. We couldn't even afford a decent meal during last year's Ramadhan."

For the first time in 20 years, the government also issued a regulation closing public schools throughout the country during Ramadhan. It said the time off would allow students to study lessons on religion and ethics at home.

Most schools will be closed for 37 days, reopening a week after Idul Fitri.

The regulation reversed a 1978 ruling under then president Soeharto which declared that schools should stay open during Ramadhan. The new regulation gives private non-Muslim schools the freedom to remain open, but they must permit their Muslim students to take time off.

The start of the holy month this year has also drawn attention to finding solutions to the country's social, political and economic problems.

The nation's 207 million people have been battered by terrible events, from the economic downturn, corruption cases, political upheaval and religious clashes. Separatist movements in Aceh and Irian Jaya provinces, reports of horrific human rights abuses and sectarian clashes in Maluku have left the country's landscape scarred by trauma.

Before Ramadhan started, ulemas and other Muslim leaders called for a halt to the communal clashes in Maluku out of respect for Ramadhan and Christmas.

"As religious followers, we are prohibited to spoil and pollute the sacred days we believe in," chairman of the Indonesian Mosques Council H. Kafrawi Ridwan said during the organization's congress here on Wednesday.

Ridwan urged hostile camps to lay down their arms as a sign of goodwill to respect the sacred events.

"Let's again create peace and uphold unity by intensifying dialogs and cooperation for the sake of mutual prosperity."

The clashes in Maluku, which broke out in the provincial capital Ambon in January 1999 when Muslims were celebrating Idul Fitri, have claimed hundreds of lives and threatened the nation's unity.

It is expected that the visit by President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri to Maluku on Sunday could be the start of the reconciliation between the warring Muslim and Christian residents of the famed Spice Islands.

Monsignor Ignatius Suharyo, the Roman Catholic bishop of Semarang diocese in Central Java, maintains that followers of all religions must welcome sacred events such as Idul Fitri and Christmas with a spirit of reconciliation.

"For me, religious celebrations are meaningful provided that the events could transform the lives of the people into better welfare and a more peaceful condition."

He says creating a better society, where corruption and conflicts are kept a minimum but there is justice for all, is a tough job and which should be carried out by all components of the nation. Of particular importance, he adds, is strong political will from the government.

Noted Muslim scholar Komaruddin Hidayat says it is time for Indonesian religious followers to increase their understanding, tolerance and respect for other beliefs.

"We have to realize that Indonesians have diverse cultural and religious backgrounds. We must start to accept the differences and live in harmony."

In a Koranic verse, God compares the Earth to a small ship sailing in a wide and deep ocean. The planet's residents are the ship's passengers who come from different cultures and areas.

The passengers have to maintain the regulations set by the captain if they want to arrive at the destination safely. If a passenger rocks the boat, it will endanger the other passengers.

"This analogy is true to the current condition in Indonesia. If we fail to find a solution to the problem and fail to create a peaceful country, we will face a very big loss," Komaruddin warns.

He says that the spirit of self-restraint, forgiveness, solidarity, honesty and modesty which prevails during Ramadhan must be manifested in all forms of the nation's life in order to usher the country into a brighter, kinder year. (raw/ste)