Tarmizi Taher criticized over blood statement

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Moslem leaders and activists strongly protested yesterday Minister of Religious Affairs Tarmizi Taher's recent statement that rioters are allowed to be killed.

The Forum of Yogyakarta Non-governmental Organizations condemned Tarmizi's statement as an arbitrary interpretation of Islamic law. A number of ulemas, including Noer Iskandar Al- Barsany of the Nahdlatul Ulama, expressed shock over the statement and said it could only cause further unrest.

"The minister has spoken out of turn. The statement doesn't solve anything," Noer Iskandar said.

Tarmizi was quoted by the Kedaulatan Rakyat daily as telling 500 ulemas and local leaders in Surabaya on Tuesday that "the blood and lives of rioters are halal (religiously permissible)...(to be shed)".

Tarmizi likened the current social political situation, which had recently been marked by riots, to the years of 1948 and 1965, when communists attempted to usurp the government.

"The current situation is similar to that of before (the coup attempt) by PKI (the banned Indonesian Communist Party)," he said. "The spate of (recent) riots were masterminded by PKI members seeking to undermine (the state ideology) Pancasila again."

Angger Jati Wijaya, Forum of Yogyakarta NGOs chairman, said that killing is permissible under Islamic law only for qishash; that is when a person has killed someone else. Another ground is bughot or when a group of people betray the legitimate government.

The forum said in a statement that legal processes, supported by Islamic law experts, have to be conducted before a person's blood is halal.

"Tarmizi's statement cannot be justified by either Islamic law or laws that are in effect in Indonesia," the statement said, adding that "what the government should do is look for and overcome the roots of problems that trigger unrest".

The forum also urged the minister to retract his statement. (23/har/swe)