Ulil launches 'Menjadi Muslim Liberal'

Dozens of activists representing a variety of faiths attended on Tuesday evening the book launch of Menjadi Muslim Liberal (Becoming a liberal Muslim) by the noted young Muslim intellectual and co-founder of the Liberal Islamic Network (JIL), Ulil Abshar-Abdalla.

The 201-page book is a collection of Ulil's essays that have been published in several respected media, and includes his essay Menyegarkan Kembali Pemikiran Agama (Revitalizing religious thought), which appeared in Kompas daily.

This essay enraged fundamentalist groups, who then issued a death fatwa for Ulil.

The author did not attend the launch of his book, which was published by JIL in cooperation with the Freedom Institute and Nalar Publishing, as he is pursuing a doctorate at Boston University in the United States.

The launch was marked by an in-depth discussion on Ulil's thoughts by several speakers -- all highly regarded among Muslim academia -- such as former president Abdurrahman Wahid, scholars Jalaludin Rahmat and Yudi Latif, and women's rights activist Maria Ulfah Anshor. -- A. Junaidi