Soeharto accords role to religious intellectuals

Soeharto accords role to religious intellectuals

JAKARTA (JP): Religious-based intellectual organizations,
widely criticized recently for fostering sectarian politics in
Indonesia, yesterday won the presidential seal of approval when
they jointly organized a seminar on human resource development.

President Soeharto told the seminar that religious
intellectuals play a major role in national development,
including promoting the country's religious life.

Indonesia has succeeded in promoting harmony between its
various religious communities, he said. "Our nation is now moving
towards a more noble goal -- promoting a sense of joint
responsibility between the various religious communities towards
development.

"Because they employ rational thinking, intellectuals can
easily communicate with one another, irrespective of faith,"
Soeharto said. "Therefore, intellectuals who come from a variety
of religious backgrounds can take the lead in promoting this
sense of joint responsibility among the various religious
communities."

The idea of the seminar, the first time that the various
religious-based organizations worked together on a project, was
conceived late last year when the groups were criticized for
reviving sectarian politics in Indonesia.

The seminar is jointly organized by four of the five
religious-based intellectual groupings: ICMI (Moslems), PIKI
(Christians), FCHI (Hindus) and KCBI (Buddhists). ISKA, grouping
Roman Catholic intellectuals, is not involved but it is expected
to take part in future joint projects.

There had been calls earlier for these various organizations
to merge into a single group, but the idea failed to garner
support from those associations.

ICMI, chaired by B.J. Habibie, a powerful cabinet minister,
has been criticized for promoting sectarian politics because many
of its leaders are active in politics. Habibie stressed that ICMI
members do not represent the organization while they are active
in politics.

Soeharto acknowledged that intellectuals have been one of the
main forces in the history of the national struggle, both before
and after independence.

"The history of our national struggle shows that our
intellectuals have a tradition of appearing in the front line,"
he said.

He cited as examples the establishment in 1908 of Budi Utomo,
the first national movement when Indonesia was still a Dutch
colony, and the 1928 Youth Pledge, when young people from various
parts of Indonesia gathered in Jakarta to pronounce their
intention to form one nation, one country and one language.

Intellectuals also helped lay the basis for an independent
Indonesia and have participated in the nation-building process
since independence in 1945, he added.

The seminar on human resource development will proceed today
and tomorrow at the Kartika Chandra Hotel in Jakarta. Among the
prominent figures scheduled to address the gathering include
former ministers Rudini and Emil Salim, and intellectuals
Nurcholish Madjid, Salim Said, Dawam Rahardjo, M.M. Papayungan, I
Gusti Ngurah Bagus, Sabam Sirait and Amir Santoso.

Soeharto said Indonesia has passed the test of promoting
peaceful co-existence between the various religions, something
which only a few other countries in the world have managed.

Many other countries are witnessing upheavals due to the rise
of religious fanaticism or conflicts between various sects of the
same religion, making life miserable even for their followers, he
said.

"We hope that what we have achieved in this field can
contribute to human civilization," he said. "The world has
experienced many conflicts between states and the religious
communities, something which need not have happened." (emb)