How Indonesia got it right

Indonesia is the most populous Muslim country in the world, which probably led the late Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) – the former Indonesian president and an enlightened ulama – to predict confidently that his country would shape and determine the future global Muslim agenda.

According to him, other Muslim countries, even those in the Middle East, would not be as capable as Indonesia in this area and it’s no exaggeration to say that Islamic discourse, whether in politics, theology, or cultural practices, is gaining widespread currency throughout the world.

In Indonesia, just as in Malaysia, there are many groups and organisations spreading their views and trying to determine and shape the future of Islam in the respective countries.

In Indonesia, these groups range from liberals (such as the Jaringan Islam Liberal) to ultra-conservative Salafis.

Some say that the “smiling face of Islam” is no longer present in today’s Indonesia. This refers to the rise of attacks against liberals and so-called deviationists such as the Ahmadiyya movement and Shias.

The city of Solo is a hotbed of conservatism, as is South Sulawesi. Committees for overcoming “threats of apostasy” are sprouting like mushrooms. Even the Muhammadiyah, long regarded as a bastion of moderate Islam, is changing its face and is becoming increasingly like the Wahabbis of a certain desert country.

Former Muhamadiyah leader Dr Amien Rais tried to give more traction to the development of political Islam by declaring that the Pancasila should not be the sole Weltanschauung or worldview for Indonesia, nor should it constitute the founding principles of the nation.

He didn’t gain much support for this view and, like all opportunists, he slowly faded away from the scene.

Today, despite the apparent growth of conservative Islam, the Indonesian government has not faltered and still strenuously advocates the need for a secular democratic system with Islam as its guiding principle.

Democracy is alive in Indonesia and gains strength each day. The freedom of the press is there for all to see. Political parties with strong religious elements are allowed to participate and campaign on whatever platform suits them.

They can seek popular support for their opinions and there is a multitude of viewpoints from which to choose. 

These organisations are not above the law of the land. Not surprisingly, the religious parties are not frontrunners in this year’s general election and I doubt that they will do well at the polls.

Whatever the case, I hope that Gus Dur’s liberal aspirations will come to the fore again.

In Malaysia, however, the “Islamisation” process involves not just non-governmental organisations or social and religious activists but the very core of the government as well, and the ongoing attacks on the Christian use of the word “Allah” give credence to the view held by political experts that, at the next general election, the contest will be about who can play the Islamic game better.

“Political Islam” is gaining a momentum in Malaysia at a rate unheard of before. This means that democracy and the rule of law in Malaysia grows increasingly fragile while authoritarian rule lurks around the corner.

I hope that the leaders of political parties in Malaysia, especially those in the Barisan Nasional, will take this development seriously. I exclude Umno from this because it is probably already too late to expect anything progressive from that quarter.

The unwillingness of Umno leaders to find a peaceful solution to the “Allah issue”, for example, is a clear sign of the march towards authoritarian rule.

Invoking the name God is just a ruse to gain support for a new dictatorship.

PAS, I hope, will be the last bastion preventing the death of democracy in this country. Who could have imagined such a thing 20 years ago? But the way the PAS president has formulated his principle with regard to the issue of “Allah” is exemplary.

He said that as long as the word “Allah” is not abused but used in prayers and in holy books, PAS has no objection at all.

This is not merely correct, in principle, it is an excellent practical solution.

If the government has any sense left, it should know that it is impossible to continue confiscating Bibles and the Guru Granth Sahib. And if anyone insists that non-Muslims are barred from using “Allah” in any context, then surely that insistence includes the singing of state anthems containing the word “Allah”.

Such a ban is patently ridiculous and impossible to implement. Furthermore, barring someone from saying or singing “Allah lanjutkan usia Tuanku” (“God grant long life to his highness”), for example, can be interpreted as an act of treason.

As such, the government should not renege on the 2010 cabinet decision and should instead explain that decision carefully and clearly so everyone understands it.

I shall leave it to them to find the courage to do so.

Meanwhile, troublemakers have had all the attention and, in the process, the government is now stuck with a ban it can’t possibly enforce.

Why do I say that Indonesia got it right? The institutions of state must be preserved and protected by the founding principles of that nation. Indonesia has steadfastly held on to this.

Operating in a democracy, the Indonesian government continues to allow the various political and religious aspirations of the nation to be aired and canvassed with all the enthusiasm adherents can muster. At the same time, no one is ever allowed to transgress the defining parameters of the Constitution.

In Malaysia, we think we are smarter.  We think we can redefine and reformulate the founding principles of our nation – or even violate the Constitution outright – just because the government or some privileged interest group feels it is politically expedient to do so.

We’ve got it all wrong. – January 7, 2014.

* This is the personal opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insider.