I S I M NEWSLETTER 3 / 9 9 Regional issues 17

Southeast Asia ANDRÉE FEILLARD Pre-election Visit

Andrée Feillard toured Java last March to give lec- tures in four cities for the launching of her book on the , Indonesia’s largest traditional- ist Muslim organization. She also visited several to East Java’s u l a m a, politicians, and student groups in East Java. She gives here a short account of her journey in the troubled province where 254 people were mysteri- ously murdered from September to November 1998. At the time of her trip, interreligious and interethnic U l a m a violence was high in Ambon.

Wednesday, 3 March 1999 town). Such sensibility about ethnic problems green flags, while the yellow flag ap- My first visit outside is to see Kiai linked to the transmigration programme is pears only once in a while. The thin 74-year in Malang, a likely successor new to me in Java. old k i a i who studied in the famous Kiai to , alias Gus Dur, the Downstairs, a number of students wait for Hasyim Asy’ari’s p e s a n t r e n from 1937 to Nahdlatul Ulama chief, to be replaced at the me. They speak of a regular weekly meeting 1942 is an ‘intellectual’ k i a i whose unasser- next NU congress in November. In the hall of of political parties aimed at preventing ani- tive ways hide a solid influence on the NU. the brand new, sparkling white p e s a n t r e n, I mosity from degenerating into violence, a Kiai Muchith recalls the high points of 1998, wait for the recitation of the soft Sufi w i r i d bid to prove to the armed forces that ‘we are Gus Dur’s political choices, and the usual t o be finished. Sitting on a bright green car- ready for democracy’. On the way to the role of the supernatural in NU’s decisions. pet, surrounded by a dozen teachers and Malang PMII (NU’s student organization) He calls Gus Dur a kiai moral, as compared to s a n t r i s, the 56-year old Kiai Hasyim holds a headquarters, one student tells me of the in- ‘normative’ k i a i s. He adds: ‘PAN is in the t a s b i h in his right hand, ready for the tough- creased popularity of Shiism among some process of adapting from the modernist est questions. He is a popular, humorous students, synonymous with ‘free-thinking’ p o l a (way of thinking) to a pola like NU’s’, he local MP (1972-1983; 1986-1987) and now and the power to change things. At the comments, ‘but still has also a respected k i a i with an innovative headquarters, many of the 40 or so PMII stu- difficulties in rejecting sectarianism, and ac- touch (he opened a p e s a n t r e n for the stu- dents question the wisdom of creating the tually NU also has [such difficulties], but be- dents of general universities in 1991). Kiai PKB, which they fear will bring the NU back cause of Gus Dur’s charisma, there is a Hasyim is a no-nonsense man: ‘Formalist to the ugly politicking of the 1970s. All but breakthrough in this direction.’ For four Islam’, he tells me, ‘has proven its incapacity two of them will vote PKB. They are mostly hours, in his small noisy sitting room, Kiai to rule the country.’ This rather direct judge- proud of NU’s ‘progressive’ and no longer Muchith speaks in confidence. He has been ment of Habibie’s ten-month old regime want the NU to be called ‘traditionalist’, asked by local Protestant priests to distrib- goes hand in hand with his concern about a which they deem unfair. ‘Progressive tradi- ute s e m b a k o (basic food items) in their possible disintegration of Indonesia. But I tionalists’? They loudly agree, optimistic place, as some Muslim radicals see it as a find his assessment of the violence in the that t h e y are the future of Indonesia, while material incentive for conversions. But the Moluccas reflects a rare equanimity: ‘Accord- the ‘others’ are the partai setan (satanic par- elderly yet dynamic k i a i preferred to have ing to our NU office in Ambon, there is a ties) ‘using Islamic symbols for political the students’ organizations, including NU’s Christian fear of Islamization. There is also the gains’. PMII, do it: ‘I have to be careful’, he explains. economic factor and the political factor. The A constant advocate of tolerance, he rebuffs elite is playing around, people think Friday morning the widespread fear of Java’s k r i s t i a n i s a s i. there is a scenario’. The Banyuwangi assassi- Back in Surabaya, the PKB chief for East nation campaign, which he compares to Java, Choirul Anam, is busy and as placid as I Sunday morning Bosnia’s, was in his opinion a political cam- have always known him to be. His soft tone Back in Bangil, I have a long conversation paign in favour of the status quo, but which hardly reveals his solid optimism about on the phone with Ustad Zahir, the rising produced the reverse effect: NU’s political PKB’s prospects: ‘We will score higher than teacher in the Shiite YAPI p e s a n t r e n, an ar- party, the Partai Kebangkitan Bangsa (PKB), you would expect’, he tells me in confidence ticulate young man, a passionate admirer of which was at first terrorized, afterwards of the PKB and the PDI, always linking the Khomeini’s achievements. Like some other gained more popularity. His confidence is two. But he too points to the crucial role of Nahdlatul Ulama k i a i I have met, Kiai Cho- shattered more by money politics (in favour the armed forces seats. On the Banyuwangi iron is increasingly tolerant of Shiism. Walk- of the PPP) than by NU’s small splinter par- massacres, Choirul comments: ‘One objec- ing through the large yard to the road, Kiai ties. Finally, he concludes, the 38 military tive was to create disorder, so that the army Choiron mumbles that he does not regret seats in the MPR will be the determining fac- would step in to restore order, but it failed. that the NU finally set up its own political tor. But, whatever happens, Kiai Hasyim And now, it is Ambon’s turn.’ party: ‘With Golkar and PPP, we were always seems convinced that ‘formalist Islam’ is the losers.’ bound to be a big failure, a disintegrating Friday evening My trip in East Java comes to an end. I factor for the archipelagic nation. Like every- Some 30 km to the east of Surabaya, I meet Choirul Anam again in Surabaya. He one else I meet during this trip, he reacts spend the night at Kiai Choiron’s p e s a n t r e n tells me of his efforts to convince the small most coolly to the possibility of an alliance in Bangil. Besides the many NU p e s a n t r e n, Islamist party, Partai Keadilan, the party of with Amien Rais, a pluralist ‘for just two days’, there is a rare ‘reformist’ p e s a n t r e n of the justice, to accept NU’s pluralist line. PK re- he notes ironically. Persis (Persatuan Islam) and a p e s a n t r e n o f cruits mostly among general university stu- Gus Dur told me later in Jakarta that Hasyim Shiite reputation, the Yayasan dents, and has Internet connections to the is indeed, so far, a favourite candidate to suc- Islam (YAPI). PAN’s Amien Rais recently visit- Refah and Hamas. ‘I say to them that God ceed him. Hasyim Muzadi may be more of an ed the district, but his convoy was stopped decided men should have different reli- organizer, and Gus Dur more of an intellectu- by protesting Muslim youths. It was Kiai gions, so it is not for us to try and change al, but Hasyim seems to approve of Gus Dur’s Choiron who opened the doors of his p e- this, our duty on earth is to apply religious choice of ‘substance’ and ethics rather than s a n t r e n for Amien, despite threats that his values and ethics.’ ‘Do they accept your ar- ‘formalism’, and he smiles, visibly amused, school would be set on fire. ‘The majority gument?’ I ask. In a tired voice, Choirul an- pointing out that Gus Dur is now being here votes for PKB’, explains Kiai Choiron, swers: ‘It is difficult for them, the indoctrina- dubbed a ‘krislam’ (an acronym for Christian ‘whereas PAN will find voters in the Persis tion is too strong over there.’ and Islam). and Shiite p e s a n t r e n.’ Sitting on a wooden In just over five days, ten months after the bench in the yard of the newly extended p e- fall of , I have discovered an Islamic Thursday morning s a n t r e n, Kiai Choiron says there is practically community increasingly divided by politics, Prof. Tolhah Hassan, the rector of NU’s uni- no PKB cooperation with PAN. I remember but at the same time hopeful that change is versity (UNISMA) receives me warmly. I find that during my research in 1991, differences at the doorstep after 32 years of manoeu- him most concerned about the situation in between NU and Muhammadiyah were vring to protect the k i a i s and the p e s a n t r e n. Ambon, which he feels is less a religious than minimized. This time, it is the reverse. I have also seen the seeds of pluralism, NU vis-à-vis Negara, Pencarian Bentuk, Makna, dan an ethnic problem. During a trip in East planted by Gus Dur a long, long time ago, Isi was published by the LKiS, in , and is Nusatenggara (NTT), east of Bali, he saw huge Saturday morning now burgeoning in the midst of inter-reli- an updated translation of Andrée Feillard’s book discrepancies between the living standards of Kiai Choiron kindly lends me his car to gious strife while one essential question Islam et Armée dans l’Indonésie Contemporaine ‘settlers’ and the ‘original population’. There drive to Jember, some 200 km to the east in looms among u l a m a s and activists: Has God (L’Harmattan, Paris, 1995). the shops were owned by Buginese or Ja- Banyuwangi’s direction, where Kiai Muchith decided whether Indonesia should remain vanese, and locals had less access to universi- Muzadi, the right hand of NU’s former r o i s one single country? ♦ Andrée Feillard is a researcher at the Centre National ties. Eight years ago, he started a grant pro- a a m, Kiai Achmad Siddiq, is waiting. I had de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), France. She has gramme for students to come and study in first visited Jember in 1988. All along the worked on the NU and Indonesian politics since 1987. Malang (there are now about 20 students in road, red PDI flags alternate with PKB or PPP E-mail: [email protected]