Violence must not beget violence: Mega

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

President Megawati Soekarnoputri reiterated on Sunday that Indonesia did not wish to see any country commit violence against another, even if they were responding to acts of violence committed against them.

"Violence should not be answered with violence," Megawati said in her speech at the commemoration of the Ascension Day of Prophet Muhammad at the Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Jakarta.

"Whoever commits terror must be punished," Megawati said. "But it is unacceptable that someone, a group or even a government -- arguing that they are hunting down perpetrators of the terror -- attack people or another country for whatever reason," she said.

Even though she did not mention any specific countries in her speech, the message was clearly directed toward America, which launched military strikes against Afghanistan last week for harboring Saudi-born militant Osama bin Laden, who is accused of masterminding attacks on the United States last month.

The terrorist attacks killed at least 5,400 people. Bin Laden is being sheltered by the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan.

Megawati backed the U.S. war on terrorism at a meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush not long after the attacks on the United States.

She has been criticized for remaining silent while daily protest have erupted in several Indonesian cities and radical groups have made threats against Americans, Britons and Japanese in Indonesia.

After meeting with leaders of the House of Representatives at the State Palace on Friday, however, Megawati broke her silence, promising that the government would review its "soft" stance on the attacks.

Megawati's remarks on Sunday were warmly welcomed by various parties in the country, urging that the government follow up with concrete action.

Syafi'i Ma'arif, chairman of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second- largest Muslim organization, said on Monday that the government had taken a step ahead in responding to the crucial issue.

"There is a new development in the President's latest statement, but there will be consequences because of such a statement," Ma'arif told The Jakarta Post from Yogyakarta.

If the U.S. government is not happy with the statement it will hurt the Indonesian economy, which still depends heavily on that country, Ma'arif said.

National Awakening Party (PKB) acting chairman Alwi Shihab also hailed the statement.

"It was delivered in such an elegant manner and I believe that the message is conveyed to the U.S. government," Alwi told the Post.

The former foreign minister said it has to be followed with diplomatic efforts to explain to the international community that, even though Indonesia supports the fight against international terrorism, it must be understood that Indonesia will not tolerate the loss of innocent civilians' lives, as is currently occurring in Afghanistan.

Earlier on Saturday, Vice President Hamzah Haz had called on the U.S. to stop the bombing over Afghanistan. The statement was made at the national meeting of the United Development Party (PPP), which is chaired by Hamzah.

Meanwhile, Indonesian Ulemas Council (MUI) co-chairman Amidhan also applauded Megawati's statement, saying that it showed her intention to accommodate the aspirations of the Muslim community.

"The statement is an expression of her statesmanship. She has taken the aspirations of the people into serious consideration," Amidhan told the Post here on Monday.

Amidhan, however, suggested that the statement should be followed up with diplomatic action through the United Nations.

"Through the UN, the government should pressure the United States to terminate the military strikes on Afghanistan," he said.

Amidhan added that President Megawati should also open discourse with various Muslim groups in the country.

"Although the President has made a clear statement, that will not instantly calm down the anti-U.S. rallies," he said.

A National Institute of Sciences (LIPI) analyst specializing in Middle Eastern affairs, Riza Sihbudi, said that Megawati's statement is yet to be regarded as the government's new stance as it had not been delivered through an official government mechanism.

He said that an official statement should be delivered after being deliberated by other Cabinet members.

Riza said it had also not accommodated the radical groups' demand, namely severing ties with the U.S..

"Megawati is facing a dilemmatic moment. She opted to maintain national stability by issuing the statement," he said, adding that her decision had shown greater attention to the voice of Muslims, who make up the majority of Indonesia's population.