Jakarta, NU Online
General Chairman of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) KH Said Aqil Siroj, popularly known as Kang Said, and his entourage visited to China on Monday (18/4). Kang Said will be in the country for coming days.

On the first day, Kang Said and his entourage arrived in the province of Beijing and was greeted warmly by the Head of The State Administration for Religious Affairs of China, Wung Zuoan.

The personal assistant of Kang Said, Muhammad Sofwan, said the NU visit was to fulfill the invitation of the Chinese Muslim community.

"This agenda (NU visit to China) is to meet the invitation of the Chinese Muslim community," said Sofwan.

Kang Said explained that the relationship between Chinese and Indonesian Islam had existed for a long time, saying that China "is one the countries managed to color the world of Islam in Indonesia."

According to Kang Said, the Chinese Islam in contact with the Indonesian one began when Commander Zheng He came to Indonesia and took the Muslim forces.

"Then Zheng He built the city of Semarang (as the center of Islamic civilization)," Kang Said told the Muslim community in Beijing.

The leader of Pesantren As-tsaqofah added that the Chinese Muslim had a very important role in the spread of Islam in Indonesia.

"Chinese (Muslim) has played a very important role for Indonesia," he said, adding that that between Indonesia and China had similar views about Islam as a peaceful religion, and expected Islam to grow rapidly in the country.

"This (peaceful) Islamic model is the one we should propagate," he explained.

According to Kang Said, extremism should be taken into account by all parties though its amount is considerably small. According to him, an effective way to deal with radical ideologies is through education.

He expressed condolences to the ongoing conflicts in the Middle Eastern countries. Therefore, he considered that the exchange of views amongst Muslims is something that is important to meet the shared perception and realize that Islam is peaceful, moderate, and tolerant.

Participating in the visit were Nyai Hj. Nurhayati Said, H Bina Suhendra (NU treasurer), Eman Suryaman (NU Chairman), Muhammad Said Aqil (NU Deputy Secretary General), and Muhammad Sofwan (personal secretary of Kang Said). (Masdar)