Rectors told to promote freedom of speech, thought
Rectors told to promote freedom of speech, thought
SEMARANG (JP): President Abdurrahman Wahid urged the country's
rectors on Friday to promote freedom of thought and freedom of
speech on their campuses.
"Rectors must not let bureaucratic interests invade the
campus. Rectors must be able to work together properly," the
President said in his address to the Rectors Forum's fourth
meeting at the Diponegoro University campus here.
"Bureaucracy is needed, but we cannot let bureaucracy dominate
the life of campuses.
"Freedom of speech is not just expressing an idea, because an
idea may not reflect a thought."
He said he expected the gathering could become a meeting of
various thoughts and ideas that were alive in society.
"Therefore, the rectors must be able to combine various points
of view into one perception."
The President also asked the rectors to promote the use of
proper Indonesian. "As a national language Bahasa Indonesia has
been developing in the wrong way," he said.
The rectors said in the meeting held after the President left
that they were worried by the threat of disintegration.
"We are deeply concerned about the trend of disintegration
threats. Disintegration will be very costly and the people will
have to pay with great losses and suffering," said the chairman
of the Rectors Forum, Eko Budihardjo, who is also rector of
Diponegoro University.
The meeting will also help the nation deal with the
disintegration threat through exchange of healthy thoughts, ideas
and opinions, Eko said.
He said the threats were lessened through the efforts of
intellectuals, the devout and politicians.
"The fate of the nation much depends on the unity of
intellectuals who are open-minded, religious people who are open-
hearted and politicians who are open-mouthed," Eko said.
As many as 224 rectors are taking part in the meeting. Sumatra
sent 36 delegates, Jakarta 58, West Java 12, Central Java 64,
East Java 25, Kalimantan 12, Sulawesi 15, Yogyakarta six and Nusa
Tenggara two. Bali, Maluku and Irian Jaya have one representative
each.
The President, accompanied by First Lady Sinta Nuriyah,
Minister of National Education Yahya Muhaimin and Minister of
Religious Affairs Tolchah Hasan, proceeded to the city of Demak,
some 60 kilometers east of Semarang.
Abdurrahman and the entourage said the Friday prayer at the
Grand Mosque in Demak, which is renowned for its Muslim
community.
The mosque, built in 1466, was the place where propagation of
Islam in Java began. It has until 1986 been renovated 16 times by
the Indonesian government in cooperation with the Organization of
Islamic Conference.
As usual, the President held a dialog with the mosque
congregation. (har/sur)