NU: Religious conflict is not Indonesia's character

Jakarta, NU Online
Religious conflict is not the character of Indonesia. Rather, it is due to a truly global conflict between the West and the East following the Cold War era.

Chairman of lawmaking "Syuriyah" body of the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) KH Hasyim Muzadi made the remarks on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Transformation Conference in Jakarta on Monday.<>

"War against terrorism has resulted in significantly greater average spread of terrorists to, among others, Indonesia and fighting against the West from Indonesia," the president of World Conference of Religions for Peace said.

Hasyim said that any emerging mass conflict had occurred because of uncontrolled system, weak leadership, and the disturbance of justice and exemplary.

"In Indonesia, before the reform there had been no religious war in nature, but independence war," the secretary general of the Nahdlatul Ulama-sponsored International Conference of Islamic Scholars (ICIS) said.

Formerly, Habib Saqqaf, the leader of Al-Asriyah Nurul Iman Islamic boarding school which has 18,000 students and is located in Parung, Bogor said that the violence practiced by terrorists in what they describe as jihad (holy war) was not in accordance with Islamic teachings.

"Islam is a religion that teaches compassion and gentleness. Islam does not only bring blessings for Muslims and all other in human beings but also for nature," Habib said.

He said someone who had studied Islam well and internalized its noble spirit would never be trapped in terrorism or teachings that justify brutality.

"People who really understand Islam will never be involved in terrorism or commit acts of violence," he said.

Habib said he objected to the perception that terrorism is related to Islam.
"Terrorism is not Islam, because Islam doesn't teach terrorism. Islam teaches peace, harmony and even social pluralism," he said. (dar)