Saefuddin remarks on Megawati

With reference to a letter by Masli Arman published on Oct. 28, 1998, I would strongly contest Masli Arman's notion that the remarks by State Minister for Food and Horticulture Prof. Dr. A.M. Saefuddin were made with good intention. Rather, Saefuddin's remarks regarding Hinduism and the presidency gave an impression of cheap party-political maneuvering at the expense of offending Indonesians of the Hindu religion.

The recent Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) Perjuangan conference held in Bali had massive support. Not only was there support from the island's Hindus but from Moslems living in Bali and from Moslems from as far away as Sumatra and Sulawesi, who undertook an arduous journey to attend the event. Clearly, the support enjoyed by the PDI led by Megawati, and for that matter other political parties, must be worrying for the politicians at Jakarta. If Saefuddin's remarks were intended to discourage Moslem support for PDI Perjuangan by suggesting that Megawati is a Hindu then he was seriously at fault.

As far as I know, Megawati is of the Islamic faith. Her father, Kusno Sukarno, the founding father of the Indonesian republic, and whom, I might add, risked his life and avoided several assassination attempts to establish Indonesia's independence was a Moslem. President Sukarno's mother (Megawati's grandmother) was of the Hindu faith and originated from Bali. Presumably she followed her husband's Moslem religion upon marriage as Hindu women normally do when marrying a Moslem or a partner from another religion.

Anyone who listened to the broadcast of Megawati's speech on the first day of the conference would have noticed that her first words were "Assalaamu Alaikum". This was accepted by her party supporters as being in the spirit of Pancasila. The doctrine of Pancasila incidentally was formed by Sukarno during exile on the island of Flores. Sukarno, in his autobiography (page 197), described the principles (later to be termed Pantja Sila) as "five beautiful pearls". The formulation of the five principles, he noted, was a "God-sent inspiration".

The uproar that has followed Saefuddin's remarks must be more than he had bargained for. The part of his remarks referring to the remote possibility of a Hindu ever becoming president especially has deeply offended Indonesians of the Hindu faith who consider his remark to be a flagrant departure from the principles of Pancasila. Megawati in any case it would appear is a Moslem. Whether a simple apology by Saefuddin, who has not explained the motive behind his remarks, is enough to convince Hindus of their rights as Indonesian citizens remains to be seen.

ROBIN PETER HOLMAN

Sanur, Bali