Hidayat Nur Wahid

Hidayat Nurwahid on the beauty and ugliness of sharia.

Hidayat Nur Wahid, one of the leaders of the parliament from the Islamist Justice Party, PKS, spoke recently on the topic of the "Beauty of Sharia" at the Islamic Book Fair (IBF) in Jakarta.

He said people had to understand that there were many different kinds of Muslim and that they had different understandings of sharia. Some Muslims thought …

Comment by A Wijaya: … with hidayat nur wahid. Regards.

Political Campaign Posters & Slogans

… showing in the party's strongest province is a considerable blow to Gus Dur and his daughter Yenny Wahid.

Some stickers on a pole, little else to be seen of the Achmady campaign in Surabaya.

Most Influential Women

… - Entrepreneur Yanti Sukamdani - Head of Hotels Association Butet Manurung - Social Worker Yenny Wahid - Director of Wahid Institute Melinda Tedja - Entrepreneur Shanti Soedarpo - Entrepreneur Erna Witoelar - MDGs Indonesia Chairwoman Siti Fadilah - Health Minister Fatimah Kalla - Entrepreneur Meutia Hatta /Minister of Women Affairs Khofifah Indar Parawansa - Politician Dewi Fortuna Anwar - International Researcher at LIPI Viven G. Sitiabudi - Business Executive …

Religious Laws

… from the religion wing of Golkar, and secretary general of Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB), Yenny Wahid, as well as Universitas Indonesia (UI) lecturer Effendy Gazali, Islam-based sharia laws came in for some criticism.

Anas Urbaningrum, former leader of Himpunan Mahasiswa Islam (HMI), claimed that the local laws based on Islam in some parts of the country (perhaps like in Padang and South Sulawesi ) were merely political plays, that they used religion as a cover for political …

Comment by Sylvester: … more people like Yenny Wahid, Sirait and Anas come to …

Presidential Scandal

… charges against Zaenal, for insulting the president. mediaindo

Presidential staffer Yenny Wahid meanwhile says she is pretty sure her boss is a one-wife man. okezone

As far as I know Mrs Ani is SBY's only wife.

Yenny Wahid, disbelieving.

In possibly related circumstances billionaire business tycoon Tong Djoe complained on 27th July that Indonesians these days were always insulting each other and accusing one another of wrongdoing. This prevented the country …

Neighbourly Affairs

Posts split from Dating …

Comment by Purba Negoro: … test Abdurrahmin Wahid- not a good leader as fails test …

Niwatakawaca, Rahwana, Cakil & Pasopati

… yet 49% of Singapore' budget is earmarked for defense.

Former Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid aka Bagong severely weakened Indonesia's marginal strategic naval leverage via the illegal sale of sand amounting to 1.28 km² (0.50 sq mi) of reclaimed land for the blue-water CNB alone- now capable of accommodating one aircraft carrier, carrier fleet support ships and sufficient draft for US nuclear submarines. Supply is via automated robotic system.

The Dan Quayle-Lew Kwan Yew MoU …

Political Acronym List

Spoilt for choice in the 2009 elections, almost three dozen political parties to choose from, most with their own acronym.

34 political parties will be allowed to participate in the 2009 elections by the Electoral Commission (Komisi Pemilihan Umum, KPU), 16 of which are established parties, that is, they passed verification at least partly based on their performance in the 2004 …

Comment by djoko: … up with Solahuddin Wahid if I recall. I hope the new …

Mega 2009

… in this respect:

Akbar Tandjung
Wiranto
Sultan Hamengkubuwono X
Hidayat Nur Wahid
Sutiyoso

Other figures who have been mentioned in the past:

Agung Laksono
Jusuf Kalla
Din Syamsuddin

Megawati's best chance of success is thought to lie in an alliance with Hidayat Nurwahid of the PKS (Partai Keadilan Sejahtera), with Maruarar Sirait of the PDIP suggesting the two would be an unbeatable team, with the PKS strong in the towns, the PDIP strong in …

Comment by Odinius: … Hidayat Nur Wahid worst idea ever!

Munir & Muchdi PR

Ross on BIN chief Muchdi's questioning by police over the murder of activist Munir.

The former deputy head of the country's spy service, BIN, has been taken into custody, apparently voluntarily, in connection with the murder of the rights activist Munir. He is presumably meant to be the brains behind Pollycarpus, the rather dim-looking Garuda pilot who is already behind bars for the …

Comment by Wilson: … road connecting Wahid Hasyim and Kebon Sirih and your …

FPI - Laskar Kafir, dikuasai Mossad

Keterangan mengenai kekerasan FPI di Monas, menyalahkan korban, pemerintah dan persekongkolan asing.

Pimpinan Tim Pengacara Muslim (TPM), Mahendradatta, mengatakan bahwa insiden Monas terjadi karena pihak AKKBB dengan sengaja memprovokasi dengan melontarkan kata-kata seperti

FPI Laskar Kafir dan Laskar Setan

Provokasi lainnya termasuk fakta bahwa parade AKKBB ilegal, tanpa ijin …

Comment by Batak Jaya: … Islam untuk Wahid Institutenya, Innalillahi, semoga …

Insiden Monas, FPI & AKKBB

Video tindak kekerasan Front Pembela Islam saat parade kebebasan beragama di Jakarta, dan tanggapan Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.

Video pemberitaan serangan Front Pembela Islam (FPI) terhadap Aliansi Kebangsaan Kebebasan Beragama dan Berkeyakinan (AKKBB) yang berkumpul di Silang Monas, Jakarta menandai peringatan hari Kesaktian Pancasila tanggal 1 Juni. Sekitar 200 orang anggota FPI …

Comment by gusdir: … nya abdurrahman wahid masih banyak di jawa …

PKS & Tifatul Sembiring

The Justice Party's ideology, recent electoral wins, and chances of success for 2009 general and presidential elections.

PKS Ideology

Eep Saefullah, a political analyst from the University of Indonesia, says the PKS /Justice Party/Partai Keadilan Sejahtera, owes much of its recent electoral success to obfuscating its true nature as a radical Islamist movement inspired by the …

Comment by torasham: … is Hidayat Nur Wahid, the leader of this party are the …

Purwakarta Church Burned Down

A church is burned down in Purwakarta, West Java by local people feeling slighted at the lack of response to their protests over its construction.

In Citeko village, Plered district, Purwakarta, West Java on 20th May a church run by the Abdi Karya Foundation (Yadika) was burned down in an attack by hundreds of local people.

The building had formerly been a tile factory and was in the …

Comment by Patrick: … Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) when he harshly …

Jewish Medal of Valor

… Rights Award

A "Medal of Valor" will be awarded to former Indonesian president Abdurrahman Wahid aka Gus Dur by the Simon Wiesenthal Center, the international Jewish human rights organization based in Los Angeles, for being wiesenthal.com

a leading voice for moderate Muslims and a champion of interfaith dialogue.

While some local reports say the award is for Gus Dur's role as a detik

protector of Jews

Gus Dur is expected to interrupt his busy schedule of …

Comment by djoko: … be passed on to Yenny). Indonesia is still waiting …

Shopping Mall Churches

Church services in malls, people in West Java are flocking to shopping malls in order to pray.

"Indonesians seek salvation in shops":

Shopping malls in West Java are home to a growing number of Christian congregations. There are 10 in this mall alone.

Few of them want to talk publicly about why they are here, but off the record they admit it comes down to intimidation by Muslim …

Comment by rima: … under Abdurrahman Wahid (1999-2001), 156 cases under …

Islamic-Western Civilization

… which has occurred for several years ago in Indonesia.

Gus Dur

One of those is Abdurahman Wahid (Gus Dur) considered as an inclusive Muslim. In this regard, he consistently campaigns for harmony with regard to religious life.

MUI

The other ones are such institutions like MUI (Indonesian Mufti Assembly) which also has an authority in response to religious harmony because in Indonesia MUI has strong power with regard to creating law.

Dialogue

The SARA (tribalism, …

Khofifah Indar Parawansa

… PKS members [opposing it].

Muhammad says that neither he nor PKS national leader Hidayat Nur Wahid has any objection to Khofifah on personal grounds, but that there exist religious objections among many. republika

Suryadharma Ali however said that in the PPP's view only the presidency was not suitable for a woman (presumably because she would then function as military Commander in Chief). In East Java there were already women regents, in Tuban and Banyuwangi ( Ratna Ani Lestari ), …

Battle of the Islam Movies

… violations of human rights. antara

Maverick politician and religious leader Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) however says that under the Indonesian constitution Fitna, and any other anti-Islam film, should be allowed to be distributed freely. detik

Jalan Jaksa Under Threat

… plans to develop the famous little street, including a huge hypermarket on its corner with Jalan Wahid Hasyim.

I should state at this point that the talk occurred during my once-a-week afternoon visit, when - contrary to wishful thinking among hostiles - I have three or four beers and head for home before nightfall. So it was a clear-headed chat, not one of those rambling discourses that ensue as the night rolls towards chucking-out time.

Jalan Jaksa.

Has anyone else heard of …

Comment by bulegila: … sabang and jalan wahid hasyim. jalan jaksa will be …

Film Ayat Ayat Cinta

… been taken up by some on the Islamist side of politics, including parliament chairman Hidayat Nur Wahid of the PKS, who on 7th March met with some of the cast and crew of the film. Hidayat said he hadn't seen the film, and he hoped there was no violence or pornography in it, but he had read the book and liked it.

Ayat Ayat Cinta novel.

Hidayat said the book's author, Habiburrahman El-Shiraz, was a good example of a new generation of writers who had attended Islamic boarding …

Barongsai, & Cultural Assimilation

… antara

Islam

Meanwhile Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) leader and former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) said on 30th January that Imlek was a cultural celebration, not a religious one, and therefore Chinese people who were Muslim were not forbidden from taking part in it. antara

Assimilation

On 17th February President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) asked Chinese people to better mix in with society and not keep their distance from others. waspada

For those with …

Bangkai Orde Baru

… fatwa yang dikeluarkan oleh MUI.

Politisi dan Pimpinan Pondok Pesantren Tebu Salahuddin Wahid mengatakan pada tanggal 14 Februari bahwa pemerintah seharusnya tidak memberi kepentingan lebih terhadap fatwa-fatwa yang dikeluarkan MUI.

Negara itu rujukannya UUD 1945 dan undang-undang.

Fatwa terhadap Ahmadiyah dan kemungkinan juga fatwa terhadap sekte-sekte Islam lainnya didasarkan oleh segi pengertian agama tertentu, namun pemerintah tidak perlu merujuk pada MUI, ujarnya. …

Sharia Byelaws

… based on Islamic teachings.

Happily, some decent Muslims are speaking up, notably the Wahid Institute's Azyurmadi Azra and Ahmad Suaidy. Suaidy, the director of the Wahid Institute, said:

The enforcement of sharia bye-laws also leads to classifying non-Muslims as second-class citizens, which is against the Constitution.

Quite so. Dhimmi status.

The Minister claims that in Aceh, for example, the disputed regulations were only applied to Muslims. In other words, the …

New Order Relics

… clerics' council.

Politician and the principal of an Islamic boarding school, Salahuddin Wahid, said on 14th February that the government should not give any special credence or weight to fatwas issued by the Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI).

This country is based on the 1945 constitution and the basic law.

The fatwa against Ahmadiyah, and presumably the fatwas against other other Islamic sects, were based on a particular religious viewpoint, which the government should not …

Comment by Djoko: … with Salahuddin Wahid) is the government, who uses MUI …

Rise of Islam

The West always tries to destroy Islam in Indonesia.

Professor Dr H Muslim Nasution, MA, a lecturer at Jakarta State Islamic University (UIN), in a discussion at Medan, February 1st, on the future of Islam, said that currently there were two regions that had the capability to lead the world Islamic community into the future, they being:

the Indian sub-continent
South-east …

Comment by Aufar Bahri: … number ‘one’ (wahid) when stating God is One. It uses …

Cultural Diversity

… about 2,000 participants from Jakarta and the provinces, led by parliament chairman Hidayat Nurwahid.

The head of the organising committee, H. Mudjiono, says the PKS plans to hold discussions with local Balinese cultural figures, and pay some visits to Hindu temples, partly to show that despite being known as a strictly Islamic party, and the main sponsor of the anti-pornography and indecency law (RUU APP), the PKS is not hostile to traditional Balinese culture at all, and in fact is …

Military Men

… military after he accepted a ministerial post in the Cabinet of President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid. Army chief territorial assistant Major General Prijanto is another officer who gave up his military career for a political job as the running mate of Fauzi Bowo in the Jakarta governor's election in 2007.

A number of retired military generals are also said to be eyeing gubernatorial or deputy gubernatorial posts in several future regional elections.

Djoko's discontent with the …

Israeli Palestinian Conflict

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Indonesia's relationship with Israel.

Visiting Israel

In early December of 2007 five representatives of Indonesian Islamic organisations, including Muhammadiyah and Nahdlatul Ulama, travelled to Israel and met its president, Shimon Peres, their trip sponsored by the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the LibForAll Foundation.

Shimon Peres said he was …

Comment by e maxwell: … Abdurrahman Wahid is a case in point. I know we …

Forgiveness

… against Suharto concerning stolen national assets has been repeatedly raised.

Hidayat Nur Wahid

Some, such as parliament speaker Hidayat Nurwahid, insist that Suharto continue to be prosecuted, given that Indonesia is a country based on law. tempo

Many others however, such as former "Reformasi" firebrand Amien Rais, recommend that the government and people forgive Suharto entirely, and end investigation and prosecution of him.

Amien Rais.

Reading out a statement …

Comment by Dragonwall: Abdulrahman Wahid did advice Soeharto to step down …

Pengampunan Pak Harto

… terhadap Soeharto mengenai pencurian modal Negara telah diperbincangkan kembali.

Hidayat Nur Wahid

Ketua Majelis Perwakilan Rakyat (MPR) Hidayat Nurwahid menekankan bahwa Soeharto harus tetap diadili, karena

"Undang-Undang Dasar menyebutkan Negara [Indonesia sebagai] Negara hukum."

Lain lagi dengan mantan jawara 'Reformasi' Amien Rais, beliau menganjurkan sebaiknya pemerintah dan masyarakat memaafkan Soeharto sepenuhnya, sekaligus mengakhiri segala kasus pidana maupun …

Banning Islamic Sects

… the group. detik

Adnan Buyung Nasution

On 30th December former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) agreed, saying that the MUI did nothing but issue fatwas, and there were a lot of other more useful Islamic organisations in existence. antara

But if it can't be disbanded then the current leadership should be changed.

And more recently, on January 7th, the Aliansi Kebangsaan untuk Kebebasan Beragama dan Berkeyakinan (AKKBB) staged a small demonstration outside the …

Comment by perseus: … Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) agreed, saying that the …

Pelarangan Sekte-sekte Islam

… tertentu setelah fatwa MUI diedarkan.

Adnan Buyung Nasution

Mantan Presiden Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) pun menyetujui. Di tanggal 30 Desember, beliau menilai bahwa MUI "gegabah keluarkan pendapat" dan masih banyak lembaga Islam lain yang lebih berguna.

Namun jika MUI tidak bisa dibubarkan, maka pimpinannya yang perlu dirombak.

Dan baru-baru ini pada tanggal 7 Januari, Aliansi Kebangsaan untuk Kebebasan Beragama dan Berkeyakinan (AKKBB) melakukan demonstrasi kecil diluar …

Indonesian Blogs

The 'beta' version of "Top 100" Indonesian blogs list. Read more or go straight there .

(December 5th, 2007)

A ranking list of the most popular blogs in and about Indonesia, at http://blogs.indonesiamatters.com/ .

The list of blogs is far from complete, so as below, keep sending in new blogs, currently there are about 90 each in the English section and the Indonesian section, …

Comment author: Toni Wahid

Comment by Toni Wahid: … reader. Best, Toni

Presidential Ethnicity

The president doesn't need to be ethnically Javanese.

Ambitious man , anti-sharia crusader , presidential hopeful in 2009 , wayang enthusiast , Asian values man, and never-ending source of material for IM, vice-president Jusuf Kalla, said on 2nd November that the president need not be a Javanese person, as has been the case ever since independence.

Jusuf Kalla.

The …

Comment by Achmad Sudarsono: … it right about the Wahid family and it’s most famous …

Bahai

… leaders. Four others refused to change back to Islam, while the seventh did not turn up. antara

Comment by iamisaid: … Abdurrahman Wahid lifted the ban on the practice of …

New Order Loyalists

… Mooryati Sudibyo, Regional Representatives Council Deputy Speaker
Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, former president
Meutia Hatta Swasono, Minister for Women's Empowerment
Fahmi Idris, Industry Minister
Tjahyo Kumolo, leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) at the House of Representatives
Yuddy Chrisnandi, Golkar politician
Jimly Asshiddiqie, Constitutional Court President
Maftuh Basyuni, Religious Affairs Minister
Sutiyoso, former Jakarta …

G30S PKI

Remembering the Communist Party (PKI) in the post Suharto era.

G30S PKI

Under General Suharto, after 1984, every September 30th citizens, particularly schoolchildren, were obliged to watch Arifin C Noor's propaganda film Pengkhianatan G30S/PKI (The Treason of the September 30 Movement and the Indonesian Communist Party), which portrayed the events of 1965, including the murders of …

Comment by The Righteous Dude: … under President Wahid, and was shown on Metro TV - …

Sutiyoso

… Forces Veterans Association, attended the occasion, as did former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, and the heads of a number of political parties and several Muslim clerics.

Sutiyoso said that if elected one of his main priorities would be implementing regional autonomy "according to existing regulations". He also said that despite having spent the last 10 years running Jakarta, he had countrywide name recognition and popularity.

Thanks to the press, people in other regions know …

Religious TV

… buy cars and motorbikes to be given as prizes. antara

Business & Faith

Solahuddin Wahid, or Gus Solah, a former vice-presidential candidate, complained on 20th September that television programs which had a Ramadan theme were just means to profit from the "holy month".

When television stations change their programming for Ramadan it's done to continue making money, not to make Muslims more faithful.

If stations were going to make special Ramadan programs then they …

Comment by Dimp: … Solahuddin Wahid, or Gus Solah, a former …

Rhoma Irama

… , Muhamad Nur Iskandar of the United Development Party (PPP), and parliament chairman Hidayat Nurwahid that Muslims had to accept the differences between them and stop fighting.

There were a lot of disturbances in society today, he said, because people who had particular understandings of Islam were intolerant of others whose opinions were not the same. Sometimes the differences involved one group trying to take over mosques belonging to other groups, or even physically attacking or …

Wahidiyah

The Wahidiyah movement is attacked in Tasikmalaya.

Penyiar Sholawat Wahidiyah (PSW) is an Islamic mystical prayer movement having its origin in East Java in the early 1960's, and is today based in Ngoro, Jombang, East Java. anu

At about 3pm on 11th September about 100 members of the Islam Defenders' Front, Front Pembela Islam (FPI), descended on the home of a Wahidiyah leader in …

Mixed Religion Marriages

… and the groom is not, had best seek a celebrant from liberal Muslim organisations such as the Wahid Institute, the Indonesian Conference on Religion and Peace (ICRP), as well as Paramadina. Having the marriage recognised by the state afterwards is a separate issue.

Former minister of religion, Quraish Shihab, is of the opinion that the matter should be of no concern to the state, but rather be left up to each religion.

Sudhar Indopa, of the Jakarta branch of the Civil Registry …

Book Burning

… the Graha Bahakti Budaya building in Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta. Former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur), and Goenawan Muhammad, signed their declaration but did not attend.

Writer of slightly smutty novels Ayu Utami said book burning was tyrannical and harmful to the mind.

Ayu Utami, tyrannised.

Marco Kusumawijaya said: okezone

Burning books, whatever the reason, is a form of terror against our culture.

A spokesman for the Attorney General's office, Agung …

Pantheism & Siti Jenar

… influential among the Javanese, even to this Arabising day, and former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) proudly goes about acknowledging himself to be a direct descendant of Siti Jenar. commongroundnews

The tomb of Siti Jenar, in Demak.

Another, lesser known, admirer of Siti Jenar, one Mathal (32) of Rajekwesi Kendit village in Situbondo, East Java, is an avid student of Siti Jenar's teachings and something in these works caused him to go about the village recommending …

Environmental Fatwa

… those which accept the MUI's authority at any rate. On 19th June this year local MUI head Abdul Wahid Qosimy said his learned body had begun stepping up efforts to teach Muslims in Indonesian Borneo about the ruling against burning forests.

Wer'e now trying to spread understanding of the fatwa against forest burning through mosques, mushollas, and in meetings with Muslims.

He said most Muslims in Central Kalimantan still had no idea about the fatwa, that by burning forests they were …

Bekasi Communism

… from a communist resurgence. So it appears from the words of parliament (MPR) chairman Hidayat Nurwahid on 13th June to a meeting of the Bekasi office of the Forum Kerukunan Umat Beragama (FKUB), the body charged with ensuring harmony between religious groups in the country.

Hidayat Nur Wahid

Because of the high level of poverty and lack of prosperity among the people Hidayat warned that communist ideas could make a comeback and urged the Bekasi FKUB to set an example to the …

Comment by Dan: … (e.g. Hiadayat Nur Wahid) out of business. Aren’t people …

Maia & Ahmad Dhani

… Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Mrs Ani, as well as former president Gus Dur's wife, Shinta Nuriyah Wahid, and the current minister for Womens' Empowerment, Meuthia Hatta. He hopes the letter will give the three important women a fuller view of what is going on in his household, whether they are interested or not.

The couple have three children, all named in mystical Sufi Islam style, Ahmad Al Gazali, El Jalaluddin Rumi, and Abdul Qodir Jaelani, but it is not clear whether any of these …

Christianisation

Christianisation through sodomy, hypnosis, and kidnapping is rampant in Indonesia.

It is often heard that Indonesia is subject to a process of Christianisation, one example being an old article by one Herry Nurdi in Sabili magazine - "Alert! Christianization is Attacking Campuses" (ALERT! KRISTENISASI MENYERBU KAMPUS), the word "attack" having the sense of "in great numbers" or "stampede", …

Comment by Suhada: … of Abdurrahman Wahid: Allah needs no defending! We …

Baiturrahman Mosque

Baiturrahman mosque enforces strict dress codes for visitors.

The Grand Mosque in the capital city of Aceh province, the Baiturrahman mosque in Banda Aceh, has begun enforcing rather strict Muslim clothing rules for budding visitors and worshippers.

Baiturrahman Mosque.

Young men who patrol the grounds of Baiturrahman armed with loudspeakers chase away potential visitors who …

Comment by Suhada: … Islam. Adurrahman Wahid in many of his essays oftentimes …

Baywatch Bikini Party

… Doing anything of an overtly sinful nature would be like committing suicide, he said. jawapos

Comment by Suhada: … Abdurrahman Wahid: “Tuhan tidak perlu dibela!” …

Indonesian Muslims, & Jews

… issues they remain ignorant about?

I know there are such enlightened figures as Abdurrahman Wahid who have attempted to get the Indonesian people to appreciate Western and American principles, be tolerant of other religions, respect the West's foreign policies and even respect Israel and the Jews. Is he the only such example of an Indonesian Muslim whose tried to get them to accept such viewpoints or are there others, like politicians, clerics or students who've tried to do the …

Comment by Aluang anak Bayang: … Abdurrahman Wahid is ONE OF MANY enlightened …

Partai Keadilan Sejahtera

… Party, PKB, (3.4%) are still yet to name a candidate. Former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, the PKB's founder, has said that the party will support Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, an MP. antara

April 4th 2007.

PAN have decided to join the PKB in giving their support to Sarwono Kusumaatmadja. A running mate has not yet been chosen. mediaindo The youth wing of PAN, however, had earlier voiced support for Adang Daradjatun. mediaindo

Book Banning

… information on the 1965 coup started to surface. In 2002, during the presidency of Abdurrahman Wahid, a number of historians started developing a different analysis of G30S in a supplement to the state's version of Indonesian history and distributed it to schools.

This effort was later accommodated by the National Education Ministry's research and development centre and aspects of it were included in the 2004 curriculum.

One history textbook for the final year of high school, from …

Religious Tolerance

Even during the Crusades Muslims had religious tolerance.

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) says during the Third Crusade in the 12th century Muslims and Christians had no hate for each other even while they were fighting, as evidenced in the relationship between the two opposing commanders, Saladin (Salahuddin) and King Richard the Lionheart.

Speaking in Kediri to a gathering of the Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB) Abdurrahman Wahid said Saladin once offered medical …

True Islam

… (IAIN) in Medan on the 21st entitled "Deviant Sects and the Solution to Disunity" Dr Ramli Abdul Wahid sought to clarify the issues:

Islam is what is taught in the Quran and the hadiths of Muhammad. If the Quran and the hadiths are contradicted then that is heresy.
(Yang dipegang dalam Islam adalah yang diajarkan dalam Al-Quran dan Hadist Nabi Muhammad SAW. Jika menyalahi Al-Quran dan Hadist maka dianggap sesat.)

Any group that taught deviant ideas had to be dealt with by the law …

Comment by Agusto: … with Ramli Abdul Wahid, he is a good Muslim, he follows …

Capital City

… from the Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB), at the urging of former president Abdurrahman Wahid alias Gus Dur, are at the forefront of those calling for the moving of the capital. Muhaimin Iskandar of the PKB says Jakarta is too overcrowded and that the administrative functions and the capital city ones should be separated. detik Muhaimin mentioned the name of Subang, in West Java, 150 kilometres east of Jakarta, as an ideal place for a capital. jawapos …

Anti-Chinese Violence

Anti-Chinese feeling in Indonesia, 1996-1999.

Jemma Purdey, in Anti-Chinese Violence in Indonesia, 1996-1999 , suggests that the anti-Chinese violence which periodically occurred prior to May 1998 had its origins in the policy of the Suharto government of marginalising the ethnic Chinese population, restricting them to certain, mainly business, roles, and portraying them as uncaring and …

Comment by Dragonwall: … Megawati then AR Wahid then SBY. J Imagine when a Vice …

Al Zaytun

… election the majority of votes from the school went to the pair of General Wiranto and Solahuddin Wahid, according to Electoral Commission figures. kompas

Previously Kalla had given a speech in which he urged for the modernisation of Islamic schools and he praised Al Zaytun as an example of a religious education school that had left behind the image of Islamic schools as cramped, dirty, and simple places. tempo

Syariah Banking

Jusuf Kalla says a syariah based banking system will better create prosperity.

Vice president Jusuf Kalla, while opening the 2007 Syariah Fair & Bazaar at the Institut Agama Islam Negeri (IAIN) on the 14th in Medan, North Sumatra, said that a banking system based on Islamic syariah law was ideal in order to bring about welfare and prosperity for the people.

The syariah system is …

Comment by Dragonwall: … when Abdul Rahman Wahid was working with Astra’s Summa …

Porn Sites

… Tholchah Hasan.

Hasan, who was minister of religious affairs under president Abdurrahman Wahid and comes from Tuban, East Java, cited an example known to him. A 13 year old girl who had fallen pregnant told her doctor that sexual relations with her older brother had been initiated after the siblings had often seen their parents watching porno movies on DVD. antara

Shinta Nuriyah

Shinta Nuriyah Wahid says Islam teaches monogamy.

Shinta Nuriyah, the wife of former president Abdurrahman Wahid, says that since the time of Muhammad Islam has always taught that monogamy is ideal.

In the Quran it is said that man cannot be fair, so it's clear that the verses in question show that Islam teaches monogamy not polygamy.
(Dalam Al-Quran disebutkan manusia tidak akan mungkin bisa …

Comment by bradlymail: Shinta Nuriyah Wahid says Islam teaches monogamy …

Partai Hanura

… party chairman Akbar Tanjung, former vice president Try Sutrisno, and former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur), witnessed the declaration of the party on the 21st. Gus Dur gave a speech in which he said Wiranto was well suited to become a national leader. antara

Fuad Bawazier said previously that the party was founded on Pancasila principles, was inclusive, not for the elite, and hoped to become one of the top three parties. republika

Wiranto was a presidential candidate of …

War Criminal

Hidayat Nur Wahid says the Indonesian parliament should report George Bush to the International Court, as a war criminal.

Hidayat Nur Wahid, who is the speaker of parliament (DPR RI) and a former leader of the Islamist Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said in Magelang, Central Java, on the 23rd of November, that president Bush of the United States was a war criminal and the Indonesian parliament should …

Comment by Andrew: … Hidayat Nur Wahid SHOULD deal with Indonesia’s …

Ahmad Dhani of Dewa

… Homeland Defense Foundation Symposium in Colorado, Dhani, accompanied by Abdurraham "Gus Dur" Wahid, says that he seeks to promote a harmonious, moderate Islam through his music. Dhani apparently asked for long term assistance from the West to help in combating extremism in Islam.

A drop out from a fundamentalist Islamic school Dhani came to be increasingly influenced by the Naqshbandi school of Sufism, a mystical form of Islam well suited to the Javanese mind and popular in East Java …

Danish Cartoon Crisis II

Another Muhammad cartoon controversy in Denmark has stirred ill-will among some Indonesian Muslims.

On the 6th Danish state television aired some amateur video footage showing young members of the anti-immigrant Danish Peoples' Party engaged in a competition to draw humiliating cartoons of Mohammad. The filming of the cartoon drawing was done secretly by an "undercover agent" who was …

Comment by Suhada: … quote Abdurrahman Wahid: “Tuhan tidak perlu dibela!! …

2009 Presidential Election

… almost a full three years away.

Old Faces.

Never-say-die former president Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) says he is ready to compete in the next election.

I'm ready, why not?
Saya siap maju, kenapa tidak?

He claims that running in the election would not be of his own desire but would only occur if his five advisers (sesepuh) urged him to. He would not name the five people however.

The head of the Central Java branch of the PKB, Ali Anshori, said his party was …

Discrimination Against Chinese

Lee Kuan Yew says there is systematic discrimination against Indonesians of Chinese descent.

The former president of Singapore, as part of a one-hour address at the Raffles Forum , held in conjunction with the IMF-World Bank Meeting in Singapore, reportedly said that the ethnic Chinese minority population in Indonesia, and Malaysia:

Our neighbors both have problems with their …

Comment by Dragonwall: … Megawati, AR Wahid to SBY. Its like a pupet show …

Tibo, et al. Execution

… has been named, the other, cancelled, date was August 12th.

Continued....

Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur) says he has tried to have the execution delayed, by telephoning the attorney general Abdul Rahman Saleh, but to no avail. He claims that the execution of the men would violate Islamic principles.

It is against Islam. Within Islam, if there is still doubt, then it mustn't be done.
(Itu melanggar Islam. Dalam Islam, kalau masih ragu-ragu, jangan dilakukan.)

The human …

Ramadhan Sweeping

… and other sinful activities. In a prayer meeting attended by over 5000 people Salahuddin Wahid, the brother of former president Abdurrahman Wahid, said that he agreed with the assembled clerics that informal mass actions against "entertainment" places, in the run up to the celebration of the fasting month, were unnecessary and that the police had the sole authority to deal with the problem.

And later, on the 13th, the Governor of Jakarta, Sutiyoso, implored mass organisations to …

Atheism

… of the "Program Hukum dan Legislasi Reform Institute", the Legal Reform Institute, speaking at the Wahid Institute Wahid Institute , as reported Hukum Online by Hukum Online, on the 6th, said that the revisions represented an over-criminalisation of religious life and belief, and that this was aimed at protecting only certain religions, those acknowledged by the state of Indonesia, presumably, Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. Traditional, "animist", faiths, …

Mohamad Guntur Romli

… reported Mohamad Guntur Romli to the police, as well as former president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, and another JIL (Jaringan Islam Liberal) person, Arief Nurlambang (see http://www.indonesiamatters.com/447/gus-dur-blasphemer/ ).

Mohamad Guntur Romli.

The allegations of blasphemy arose when Guntur hosted a weekly Radio Utan Kayu talk show featuring Gus Dur. The former president was responding to a listener's question about the controversial anti-pornography bill, RUU APP, …

Tibo Execution

… Jakarta a coalition of human rights groups urged the government to cancel the execution, at the Wahid Institute. Three religious leaders in North Sulawesi and Central Sulawesi also requested similar. Bishop of Manada, Mgr. Joseph Suwatan, chairman of the North Sulawesi branch of Majelis Ulama Indonesia (MUI), Arifin Asegaf, and President of Asia Fellowship of Mission 21 Partner Churches, Dr Nico Gara, were of the opinion that the execution would harm the good name of Indonesia and reflect …

Lebanese Jihad

… for this purpose to Hizbullah so that weapons could be bought.

Former president Abdurrahman Wahid asked that people not be overly influenced by events in the mid-east. The silent majority of Muslims were moderate, he said, but they often failed to have an impact.

On the 9th Defence Minister Juwono Sudarsono said there was no need for jihadists because the United Nations would handle the problem. Juwono also admitted that the government could not prevent people going to Lebanon …

Infotainment Gossip Shows

… of other people they were sinful, he said.

Former leader of the NU, Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid, however advised people to not pay too much attention to the fatwa, as it was not the only accepted view of the matter. He said the NU was entitled to take a position on the question but others were free to think as they pleased. He mentioned the example of a former leader of the NU, Bisry Samsuri, who had forbidden women from playing drums in music bands. Many women, including members of …