Syafii declares stance on Islamic law
Syafii declares stance on Islamic law
YOGYAKARTA (JP): Chairman of the second largest Muslim
organization Muhammadiyah, Syafii Ma'arif, opposed some Muslim
organizations' demand for the inclusion of the Jakarta Charter in
the 1945 Constitution, which means full implementation of Islamic
law for Muslims in the country.
Syafii said that inserting the Jakarta Charter into the
Constitution would only provoke disharmony among people in this
diverse country.
"Implementing the Jakarta Charter will only add more burden to
the country which is now on the brink of collapse," he told
reporters at his office in the State University of Yogyakarta
(UNY).
He said that the demand was also not popular and that he
believed most people would oppose it.
The groups, which are demanding the implementation of the
Jakarta Charter, have mistakenly chosen the strategy to promote
Islamic values, according to Syafii.
"I believe that even members of the People's Consultative
Assembly (MPR) will not support the demand," he said. "If any of
MPR members do support the idea the number may be around ten
percent of all Assembly members," he said.
The Assembly has 700 members.
"Although the number of Muslims in the country reaches more
than half of the total population, their political preferences
are varied," he said.
"Many Muslims voted for PKI (the banned Indonesian Communist
Party) during the 1955 general election," he cited as an example.
Syafii charged that the demand by some Muslim organizations
for the inclusion of the Jakarta Charter in the Constitution
merely reflected the organizations' goal to politicize religions.
"This is a betrayal of the teachings of the religion itself."
"These groups only care about the symbolism, not the essence
of Islamic teachings," he said.
He believed that most Muhammadiyah members also disagreed with
the demand.
"Maybe one or two Muhammadiyah members support the idea of the
inclusion of the Jakarta Charter in the Constitution. But, as
long as they use their common sense, I'm sure they will oppose
the demand," he said. (44)