What does PKB mean to you?

I would like to thank Mr. Yusuf Wanandi for the misleading information regarding the National Awakening Party (PKB) in What NU means for RI's future (Friday, May 28, 1999).

If indeed Gus Dur is very open and democratic in his thinking about Islam and its role in Indonesian society, why doesn't he recognize other Nahdlatul Ulama-based political parties such as the United Development Party (PPP), the Nahdlatul Ummat Party (PNU) and the Muslim Community Awakening Party (PKU)? Can you show me where is the "democracy" in this? If Gus Dur had respected the "plurality" of NU followers, clashes between PPP and PKB supporters would have been prevented. It is public knowledge that not all NU followers support Gus Dur's PKB. It is not proper for Mr. Wanandi to say only PKB cannot be separated from NU.

By recognizing only PKB as an NU-supported party, Gus Dur knowingly or unknowingly has divided NU followers, who, otherwise, would be a potential element in creating a stable, secure and just Indonesian society.

I do not think that a man who recently said NU was a hen whose egg was PKB while the other NU-based parties were the hen's droppings deserves all the praise you gave him.

Mr. Yusuf Wanandi, I have no interest in supporting any political party and frankly I am not even eligible to vote. However, your article concerns me because it might mislead those people who are not politically mature. Your position as the chairman of the Supervisory Board at the Centre for Strategic International Studies leads me to ask, what interest do you have in promoting PKB?

ISACH WAHYU ZULFIKAR KARMIADJI

Tangerang, West Java