U.S. releases documentaries on Muslims' lives in America

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Amid rising public suspicion toward the U.S.-led war on terrorism, the U.S. government released here on Tuesday a series of mini documentaries on the lives of Muslims in America, which critics said was merely "propaganda" in favor of the superpower.

A 10-minute movie titled Common Ground: Muslim Life in America is meant to show to the Muslim world that the U.S. allows Islam to spread and develop in the country.

"These represent an effort to reach out and bridge some gaps in communication," U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia Ralph L. Boyce said in a news conference after Tuesday's showing.

He said Indonesia was given the first opportunity to watch the documentaries due in part to its status as the world's most populous Muslim country.

The documentaries feature the lives of four Muslims in America, who claim they receive equal treatment and respect in practicing their religion in the U.S.

However, the film was immediately criticized during its showing, with audience members saying that it came across more as propaganda as the U.S. was overpraised throughout the film.

Scholar Riza Mallarangeng, who attended the showing, underlined that the documentaries should provide a complete picture, which also covered the downside of living as Muslims in the U.S.

The chief editor of Suara Pembaruan evening daily, Bondan Winarno, said of the campaign: "This is too hard a sell, too short and too unrealistic".

Lily Zakiah Munir, a figure from the country's largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) who visited the U.S. recently, said last week that American Muslims were not more moderate than their Indonesian counterparts.

"If you visit Muslim community members in America, you will find their children being taught Arabic symbolism, such as sword and jihad (holy war) slogans, which gives the impression of violence," she told The Jakarta Post.

Lily said the religious knowledge of American Muslims had largely been influenced by Arab scholars, who she said were generally not critical of Islam and understood it literally.

"That's why we should not wonder why many American Muslims appear to be more fundamental than Indonesian Muslims in general," she said.

Boyce said in his opening speech that strengthening ties with Muslims had taken special importance after the Sept. 11 attack last year against New York and Washington, which provoked the war against terrorism.

The U.S. has been accused of aiming the war against Muslims as most of their targets in the campaign are Muslim-based organizations or countries.

The ambassador also said that the campaign would be aired throughout the Muslim fasting month, with several Muslim countries also airing the same campaign.

When criticized that the campaign might be viewed as propaganda, he said: "It's a free country. People can draw their own conclusions".

He also brushed aside a suggestion that the campaign was related to the Bali bombing incident on Oct. 12 as some suspected that the U.S. was behind the tragic incident in a bid to gain more support against terrorism.

"I categorically reject that the U.S. was behind the Bali bombing," Boyce said.

"I am appalled to hear this story continue to circulate among people whom I believe have more important and profound challenges to face here in Indonesia," he added.