Soeharto to open NU congress
Soeharto to open NU congress
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto has agreed to open the 29th
national congress of Indonesia's largest Moslem organization,
Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), in Tasikmalaya, West Java, this December.
Seven NU leaders, including its chairman Abdurrahman Wahid,
told journalists after meeting Soeharto yesterday that the
President also welcomed the NU pledge to return to its original
mission as a socio-religious organization.
"NU's pledge is very appropriate and will benefit and create
peace of the mind among NU supporters," Soeharto was quoted as
saying by K.H. Sahal Mahfudz, acting vice chairman of the NU law-
making body.
Led by K.H. Ilyas Ruchyat, acting chairman of the body, the
Moslem leaders also asked Soeharto for his guidance as to how
they could best run the congress.
"He gave us some very useful advice," Ruchyat said.
Sahal said Soeharto was happy with the decision to start
refocusing efforts on social and educational development,
especially for its 34 million members.
According to Sahal, President Soeharto suggested that NU
establish more social service programs like hospitals and
orphanages.
"NU has tremendous potential and it should be harnessed for
those purposes," Soeharto was quoted by Sahal as saying.
Cooperatives
Soeharto also said that NU should develop its economic
potential. He suggested that the organization, which manages
thousands of pesantren or Islamic boarding schools establish
cooperatives.
"The santri (students) should be actively involved in
cooperative activities after they finish their education,"
Soeharto said. "That's why they need to be educated."
"What's important is not that the students gain economic
values from the cooperatives, but that the cooperatives become a
means for them to learn about economic management," Soeharto was
quoted by Sahal.
Despite rife speculations, NU has decided not to discuss the
possibility of reversing its 1984 historic decision to quit
formal politics and return to its original mission, known as
Khittah 1926, in order to accommodate a growing number of NU
leaders who wish to be more actively involved in politics.
On the contrary, Sahal said, the congress, which meets every
five years, will discuss ways to actualize the Khittah, which is
the popular term for NU's Spirit of 1926.
NU, once a powerful political party, decided to abandon
politics in 1984 and concentrate on the original mission laid out
by its founders, in 1926, to promote the education of Islam and
the welfare of Moslems.
Sahal said the pledge has actually encouraged NU members to
individually choose any political affiliation in order to carry
out their political inclinations. (swe)