Saefuddin remarks on Megawati

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