Jakarta, NU Online
The Advisory Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) KH Ma'ruf Amin urged the government to take special measures in fighting against extremist groups in the name of religion or politics. State, according to Ma'ruf, should not be indifferent to those who violate the national commitment. For him, the country has the basic principles that must be adhered to every citizen in Indonesia.<>

In an interview with NU Online, the news portal of the Indonesia's largest Muslim organization, in Jakarta on Tuesday (22/7), Ma'ruf called for the importance of the government to take the firm measures by, first of all, promoting the ethics and the commitment to the state.

The government, he added, should encourage possible national dialogues, saying that the extremists should be told that in the nation-state there were ethics and consensus that must be met.

"If there is a dissenting opinion, as long as it is in the corridor, I think there is no problem. But when it's outside the corridor, the government should warn (the extremists) and take action against them," he said.

Ma'ruf also stressed that dialogue was a solution to any possible differences, saying that the commitmet to maintaining the four pillars of the state was a must for it is untolerable.

"As far as they differ in implementation, we can hold dialogues. But if there are efforts of questioning the four pillars, this is a violation of consensus. The state is obliged to take a certain approach," Ma'ruf said.

He was of the opinion that "the state has Pancasila, the 1945 Constitution, unity in diversity, and the Homeland as a reference to live together in Indonesia. If they violate that commitment, the state must use its right, act and be firm against them.

Editing by Sudarto Murtaufiq