RI's Moslem community coming into its own

RI's Moslem community coming into its own

B.J. Habibie's election as vice president and the
predominantly Moslem cabinet has fanned questions about the
political map of Islam in Indonesia. Moslem intellectual
Nurcholish Madjid, rector of Paramadina Mulya University,
discusses the implications.

Question: Some people say the election of Habibie, chairman of
the Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI), as
vice president will lead to Islamic fundamentalism?

Nurcholish: Many people in the United States believe Indonesia
is moving toward fundamental Islam. But whenever a foreigner
asks, I'd say: "Habibie is actually a guarantee that Indonesia
will never move to Islamic fundamentalism... because Habibie is
a liberalist Moslem."

There is a jealousy among some businesspeople toward Habibie,
and they are manipulating the issue by suggesting that Indonesia
is moving toward Islamic fundamentalism.

Habibie is unchallenged in technological capability. Many
people don't know that Habibie made breakthroughs in aeronautic
technology. He has become wealthy because of his patents for such
breakthroughs. I heard that Habibie is the holder of a patent for
a component of a U.S. fighter. That's one of the reasons why he
always finds it easy to have a meeting with U.S. figures.

Q: Is President Soeharto's choice of Habibie as vice president
and the appointment of mostly Moslems in his cabinet an attempt
to garner more support from Moslems?

N: Pak Harto started implementing his Islamic policy in the mid-
1980s, when many Moslem intellectuals graduated from
universities. He was really moving in line with the development
of his own nation.

Previously, government policies disregarded the fact that
Indonesia was a Moslem nation, and they were effective because
Moslems were not well-educated then. Moslems are now getting more
educated because more and more of them have gone to universities
since the mid-1960s.

Q: Was there any pressure on Soeharto to include more Moslems in
his cabinet?

N: There was never external pressure on Pak Harto. He sees the
growing number of Moslem intellectuals capable of leading the
country. On the other hand, some people had an illusion that they
would be able to push Pak Harto from overseas to do what they
wanted, but the United States, for example, was not interested in
the religious affairs of other countries.

Q: How has the Moslem community respond to Soeharto's Islamic
policy?

N: Moslems of the middle and lower classes are emotionally
supporting him. If there is a serious problem confronting him,
for example, they will stand behind him.

However, Moslems with high educational backgrounds, including
ICMI members, are very critical of him. They are happy with his
recent Islamic policy, but they are disappointed with his
performance concerning social and civic morality.

Q: What is the prospect of relations between the government and
Moslems in the future?

N: Indonesia is really a Moslem nation. It will no longer be
relevant to confront Moslems with their non-Moslem colleagues.
Even now, people in various organizations feel at ease using
Islamic jargons or quoting Koranic verses in debates.

Q: Will this influence relations between the government and the
Moslem-dominated United Development Party (PPP)?

N: No. PPP executives actually like Pak Harto, who is adopting an
Islamic policy.

Q: Will this lead to jealousy with the Armed Forces?

N: No. The Armed Forces is experiencing a similar trend. Someone
who was trying to prevent such a trend, which was identical to
the development of psychological democratization, in the Armed
Forces, has been flung off.

Q: So, you see the Moslem community developing stronger in the
future?

N: Moslems in rural areas, particularly those under the Nahdlatul
Ulama (socioreligious) organization, started studying at
universities in the 1970s, Indonesia will witness a new
phenomenon in the 2010s with the emergence of Moslem
intellectuals with traditional backgrounds. NU chairman
Abdurrachman Wahid has been paving the way for their emergence by
introducing liberalist ideas.

NU people, who are now poorly represented in the political
arena, will then become on par with their colleagues from the
other Moslem organizations.

I also anticipate that by 2020 to 2025, the real Indonesian
nation will be established. What I mean by the real Indonesian
nation is one with objective, proportional and representative
equilibrium in the political powers. All social segments at that
time will be represented in the country's political arena.

NU, which has a large number of supporters, for example, is
now very poorly represented in the political arena. None of its
members has a license for press media publication. (riz)