Scholars say radical Islam passing trend

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta

Noted Muslim scholars played down on Tuesday fears of rising radicalism among Indonesian Muslims, saying the phenomenon would not last long and would only affect a small number of people.

The chairman of Muhammadiyah, the country's second largest Muslim organization, Ahmad Syafii Maarif, said Muslim radicals, who have been linked to numerous terror attacks across the country and the world, were grouped in only a handful out of the hundreds of Muslim organizations in Indonesia.

"They are the minority and will disappear in the near future as they have nothing to offer Muslims as a whole," Safii told a seminar here on progressive Islam held by the International Center for Islam and Pluralism (ICIP).

He suggested that the government quickly address the economic problems facing the country and work harder to raise living standards in order to eradicate radicalism in the Muslim community.

"If the government fails to solve the problems of poverty and injustice, radicalism will persist longer," said Safii.

Another speaker at the seminar, United States Ambassador Ralph L. Boyce, agreed with Safii, saying he believed Islam was a peaceful religion and that the U.S government had never considered Islamic religious schools (pesantren and madrasah) as breeding grounds for terrorism and radicalism.

"Unfortunately, it has become clear that there are a few pesantren and a few individuals who are espousing teachings to regard non-Muslims in Indonesian and non-Muslims in the world with suspicion, hatred and rejection," said Boyce.

He said these schools and individuals were small in number and did not represent the mainstream majority. However, he added that even a small number of people could do a great deal of damage, which harmed the reputation and image of Islam in Indonesia.

The rector of the Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University, Azyumardi Azra, said progressive Islam in Indonesia, which respected peace, pluralism, and tolerance, was part of a long tradition that stretched back to the 17th century.

"Islam is genuinely preaching democracy and pluralism. We can trace this tradition back to the 17th century when many Muslim intellectuals advocated such teachings. So, it is very wrong to connect Islam with terrorism and violence," said Azyumardi.

All the speakers in the seminar expressed their optimism that the face of peaceful and pluralist Islam here would eventually unfold and lead Indonesian Muslims to democracy.

To eradicate radicalism in Islam, they agreed to conduct open discussions among Muslims, and to promote interreligious understanding and tolerance in the country.

Muslims account for around 85 percent of Indonesia's population of over 215 million, making it the world's largest Muslim nation.

Many countries have pointed to Indonesia as a hotbed of terrorism following the attacks on the U.S in 2001 and a series of bloody bombings in Indonesia that culminated in the Bali bombings of 2002. Indonesia, however, says it has made determined efforts to bring those involved in terrorism to justice.