Yogyakarta (Antara Bali) - Muslim mass organizations such as Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah should call on the public to not believe in black campaigns prior to the July 9 presidential poll.
"We have observed that both NU and Muhammadiyah have remained silent and have not called on their members to firmly refuse black campaigns," Executive Director of the Institute for Islamic and Political Studies (LSIP) Subkhi Ridho said at a discussion on "religious intolerance and political crimes" at the Sunan Kalijaga State Islamic University (UIN) in Yogyakarta on Wednesday.
The two largest Islamic organizations in the country must play a greater role, he said.
The stand of the two mass organizations will serve as a reference for their members and the public to decide, he said.
"Most of the Indonesian people still look up to the figures of their mass organizations rather than deciding by themselves," he said.
Although the two mass organizations are neutral, many of their figures had interest in supporting one of the presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs.
"(NU and Muhammadiyah) figures from the central level down to the village/subdistrict level have blatantly been fragmented or tempted to support either one of the presidential candidates," he said.
NU and Muhammadiyah should be aware that black campaigns, particularly those related to race, religion, and ethnicity, will not only have a political impact but also give rise to a rift in the community, he said.(WDY)
