Sectarianism against the political trend

Sectarianism against the political trend

Political parties formed along religious and ethnic lines have
emerged in recent weeks. Ulil Abshar Abdalla of the Agency for
Human Resources Research and Development at Nahdlatul Ulama (NU)
addresses the public fears of rising sectarian politics.

Question: Are Indonesians becoming sectarian?

Ulil: Not necessarily. These new parties have been encouraged
by increasing opportunities for people to express their political
aspirations. They have been oppressed for a long time. These new
parties aim to restore the people's civil and political rights.

Fears of sectarian politics and the possibility of national
disintegration are unfounded because sectarianism is against the
political trend. Besides, our socio-political climate is strong
enough to maintain national unity.

Q: Can you describe the elements that provide such a climate?

U: First, people of different religious and ethnic groups are
familiar with one another. They have cooperated in various
organizations, such as in the bureaucracy and professional
associations, to achieve common goals. They have managed to
ignore their religious and ethnic differences.

Second, the majority of Indonesian Moslems are becoming more
inclusive and open-minded, and value democracy, plurality and
human rights. People from other religions, including Christianity
and Buddhism, also have similar values and commitments.

We need not fear too much about the establishment of parties
with religious sentiments. Islamic parties, for one, will not
likely receive widespread support.

Q: NU youths recently prevented Muhammadiyah chairman Amien Rais
from visiting East Java towns. Why did that happen?

U: Their number is small. They were manipulated by certain people
to serve their own political interests.

The number of more tolerant Moslems, particularly those in
urban areas, is growing steadily and they have considerable
influence over rural followers. This trend toward greater
tolerance is driven by religious discourses by influential
figures like Amien Rais and NU chairman Abdurrahman Wahid.

Q: What about the attacks against Chinese-Indonesians?

U: These were partly motivated by sectarian feeling. But social
and economic gaps, disenchantment with the government and
conflict among the political elite contributed much more to the
incidents than sectarian sentiments.

Q: Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid has appealed to people
not to set up parties based on religion?

U: He still approaches politics with the old mentality. We should
not take officials like him seriously because in this era of
reform, the people will be more involved in shaping the country's
future. Public initiatives will be more important than those of
officials with an old political mind-set.

Q: Some people say that the increasing influence of the
Association of Indonesian Moslem Intellectuals (ICMI) has fanned
sectarian sentiments. Is that true?

U: There is no proof to support such an allegation. ICMI is a
fragmented group of people with different and, sometimes,
contradictory interests. ICMI is (politically) insignificant
because it has no charismatic ideologist who can influence the
direction of its aspirations.

Q: Do you think religious-based parties would support the
development of religions in the country?

U: No. These parties could even damage the image of religion.
Their leaders might use religious teachings to legitimize their
policies. So they would be exploiting religion for their
interests.

Q: Is the international community concerned about the possibility
of a Moslem party dominating Indonesian politics?

U: No. They have seen the trend of inclusiveness from Indonesian
Moslems, as reflected by the behavior of Amien Rais and
Abdurrahman Wahid. Both men have won respect from the
international community for quickly condemning the rioting
against Chinese-Indonesians. (riz)