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Indonesia Debates Authenticity Of Its Islamic Status
by Kazi Mahmood
KUALA LUMPUR, April 4 (IslamOnline) - Indonesian's debated Wednesday concerning the authenticity of a controversial fatwa issued by some members of the Muslim clerical division of the Nladhatul Ulama (NU), the largest Muslim based organization in Indonesia.
Some members of the NU's bansers and "suicide groups" have said they could eliminate opponents of President Abdurrahman Wahid in their bid to secure his presidency until the end of his mandate in 2004, saying that any criticism against the president should be viewed as rebellion against the leader of a Muslim country.
Such statements have sent the country into a debate concerning the authenticity of its status as an Islamic nation.
The bansers believe they have the right to execute such fatwas since Indonesia is a majority Muslim nation. The country claims to have an 85%-90% Muslim population spread over 30,000 islands reaching from Malaysia to Australia.
However, Islam is not the official faith in Indonesia. The country also adheres to the Panchasila, the constitution of the country.
The Panchasila are the five pillars of the nation, one of which is trust in God and another considered the most important, is respect for all faiths in the country.
Wahid and the NU support the Panchasila. His vice president, Megawati Sukarnoputri, leader of the Democratic Party of Indonesia for Struggle (PDI-P), made the Panchasila the official constitution of the party.
However, the sacrosanct Panchasila does not govern actions within the Axis movement in Parliament and fails to garner support from other Muslim based parties, such as the Crescent and Star Party and the National Development Party (PPP) of Hamzah Haz.
Members of the NU have said they do not support the idea that a group of people, other than the army and police, can claim to be protectors of the President while there are sufficient laws to protect the him.
The NU said they could not help however, if other groups want to "die" for the President in their refusal to accept that the president could be removed from his post for several reasons.
The party added that such groups should also understand that the position raises a difficult question in Indonesia.
Since the country is not governed under Islamic laws, they asked, "Thus, is it possible to use extreme measures such as killing of opponents to a leader to achieve a certain aims under the un-Islamic Panchasila constitution?"
They said it was not possible to use references from the Salaf group to apply in today's Indonesia since the country was run under a constitutional government.
Earlier in March, the country was shocked to learn that a section of NU supporters were ready to kill any opponents of Wahid's regime.
Some of Wahid's supporters mentioned the names of Amien Rais, speaker of the Parliament, and Akbar Tandjung, speaker of the House of Representatives, saying these two leaders would be physically eliminated.
This prompted Parliament and the House to cut short criticism of Wahid momentarily. It also forced the military and police to state they would not hesitate to shoot at Wahid supporters, if necessary, to safeguard the constitution.
Pro-Wahid demonstrators said on Wednesday they would again deploy their strength in Jakarta in a bid to tame legislators who are still pressing for a second censure motion against the heavily embattled, and physically impaired, leader.
The NU has the support of some 40 million people, mostly from villages on Java and Madura Islands. It is the largest Muslim group followed by the Muhamadiyah, claiming some 25 million followers. The Muhamadiyah also has a strong following in Malaysia and Singapore.
In another political development, Indonesian politicians are squabbling over which ethnic group in Indonesia should hold the post of vice president.
Politicians have been saying that a non-Javanese politician should hold the post currently held by Megawati Sukarnoputri, who is from Java Island.
The issue came into the political spotlight with the possibility that Megawati might take over the presidency from Wahid in the coming weeks. Parliament may decide to impeach Wahid, making way for Megawati to become the president.
Megawati's potential presidency woiuld also pave the way for a non-Javanese vice president, to be voted in by Parliament. Potential candidates include Tandjung, leader of the Golkar party, and Yusril Mahendra, former Minister of Law in Wahid's cabinet.
Mahendra, however, said it would be "fitnah" (divisionism) if he said he was a potential candidate to the post that might go to Amien Rais, leader of the National Mandate Party (PAN) and speaker of the Parliament.
It was Rais who started the debate on the ethnicity of the vice president during a discussion with Mahendra.
Former president B.J. Habibie was one of the very few non-Javanese vice presidents. He is, till the present, the sole non-Javanese president in Indonesian history.
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