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)
NU, Muhammadiyah Must Call on Members to Refuse Black Campaigns
Kamis, 3 Juli 2014 11:44 WIB
