http://www.thejakartapost.com/detaileditorial.asp?fileid=20060830.E02&irec=1
Say no to conservative Islam Aguswandi, Banda Aceh If ever there was a discourse about "them and us" in Indonesia, it should be about "them" who want to promote conservative Islam through sharia that oppresses women and is antidemocratic and against multiculturalism, and "us" who want to promote civil Islam, secular democracy and a multicultural, cosmopolitan society. Those of us in the "us" category have to take a stand on this now before it is too late. We have to parade our views, demonstrate and speak out immediately and clearly against "them". Indonesian Islam has been unique in its compatibility with democracy. It has been celebrated for its moderation in contrast to the conservative, extreme version that is practiced in the Middle East. Despite being in the majority, Muslims in Indonesia have lived happily side by side with Indonesians of all other religious beliefs. However, that might not be the case in the future. It is already not the case in some parts of Indonesia. Now, as in many other parts of the Muslim world, Islam is under threat from the tidal wave of "Arabization" and conservatism. If we do not stop it now, this growing conservatism will result in our religion becoming a tyranny of the majority Muslims against the minority non-Muslims or even a tyranny against mainstream Muslims. This is a critical moment for the future of the unique and moderate Indonesian version of Islam. It is now time for moderate Muslims, in alliance with the democratic and human rights movement in Indonesia, to speak out against "them". It is time for "us" to voice our loud support for civil and moderate Islam, to defend secularism and the multicultural society of Indonesia. It is time to combine all of this with our work to build democracy and human rights in Indonesia. This is not about echoing what the west says. It is not about appeasing western pressure on the Muslim world. It is about what kind of future society we want to have. We cannot let the rise of conservative Islam continue unchecked; it will be too late to deal with it later. In future, the subject could become too risky to touch; it could become impossible to find the space to debate it. They are not winning yet, but the space is already constrained. Anybody who speaks out against "them" is accused of and perceived as anti-Islam. Foreigners who say something about sharia are regarded as Islamophobes. Women who speak out about sharia's discrimination against women are easily dismissed as western-influenced feminists. The only possible challenge can come from male Muslims who still face the risk of being seen as bad Muslims. Before it's too late, we have to take that risk. Aceh's implementation of conservative sharia law should be a lesson for everyone. We should not repeat our failure to engage and deal with sharia and conservative groups, as we did in Aceh. Many of us failed to realize how Islam in Aceh was being exploited by conservative groups to promote something new, a different type of Islam that oppressed women, restricted freedom of speech, imposed a strict code of conduct and behavior that was against the local tradition and the nature of Islam itself. When sharia in Aceh was still a discourse, the Acehnese did not express their disagreement clearly enough. Many people did not want to say anything publicly for many reasons, including fear. Many Indonesians were ignorant about what was proposed. Now it is being implemented as the law, it is too late and too difficult to even challenge. The lesson here is do not play with time or it will become too late. We need to do something about this now. This is an elephant in the room that cannot be ignored. The elephant will take and has taken victims in some parts of Indonesia, especially in Aceh. It will cause more harm later to the development of the country. It will harm the development of democracy. It will interfere with economic recovery. It will create a very bad image for everyone. This is the last thing anyone should want to happen to Indonesia right now. There is no other option, but for all of us to build alliances against conservatism. An axis of anti-extremism and conservative Islam has to be built. We should reject any attempt to intimidate and restrict the debate. We have to challenge the promotion of conservative Islamic values. We should not be silent anymore. The time has come for us to speak out against "them" loudly and clearly. We cannot wait for the future impact. All the accusations of being anti-Islam, Islamophobia, being sympathetic to the west, etc., should not deter us from discussing the bigger issues that will have an impact on our society. It is still not too late to do things better. The stakes are high: if they win, everyone here will be a mullah, but if we win, everyone will be a democrat. The writer is a human rights advocate. He can be reached at [EMAIL PROTECTED] [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] *************************************************************************** Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. Menuju Indonesia yg Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ppiindia *************************************************************************** __________________________________________________________________________ Mohon Perhatian: 1. Harap tdk. memposting/reply yg menyinggung SARA (kecuali sbg otokritik) 2. Pesan yg akan direply harap dihapus, kecuali yg akan dikomentari. 3. Reading only, http://dear.to/ppi 4. Satu email perhari: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 5. No-email/web only: [EMAIL PROTECTED] 6. kembali menerima email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! 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