Just Do It

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Mon, 06/19/2006 1:25 PM  |  Opinion

If one could be permitted to give a quick fashion tip to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, it would be that he needs a new pair of sneakers. He should switch to the brand that has ""Just do it"" as its slogan, and then try to live up to it.

That he is reticent when it comes to making important decisions on issues affecting the nation is already well known, but we have to draw the line when he fails to take firm action against a clear and present danger to the secular and pluralist nature of the state and the unity and existence of the republic.

The lack of action on the part of the central government against the introduction of sharia (Islamic law) or sharia-inspired bylaws in some regions has been the source of great concern, not just among non-Muslim minorities, but also, as evident from the level of discussion it has provoked, for many in the Muslim majority. The province of Nangroe Aceh Darussalam is already under a sharia regime and today more than 20 regencies and municipalities across Indonesia proclaim themselves to be ruled by sharia or have introduced sharia-inspired legislation.

These laws either replace or coexist with national state laws, creating confusion and, more significantly, instilling fear about the direction this nation is heading. They certainly go against the secular tenets this republic was founded on, the principles that have guaranteed the pluralistic nature of Indonesia since its inception in 1945.

Already, we are hearing grumblings in areas where Islam is not the dominant religion. If their concerns are not addressed, they will soon lead to groups rethinking their participation in the Indonesia project. Papua and Aceh would then be the least of this nation's problems.

This creeping ""shariatization"" (others use the expression ""Talibanization"", after the former regime in Afghanistan that applied rigid Islamic laws) clearly goes against the 1945 Constitution. The massive campaign to restore Pancasila as the state ideology this month should be seen as an attempt by those concerned to reaffirm the secular and pluralist principles that have founded Indonesia. Yet, having given the keynote address during the celebrations to mark Pancasila's 61st anniversary, a speech in which he eloquently addressed those concerns, Yudhoyono has failed to take the action expected of an elected president.

Of course, no clear-headed Muslim would disavow sharia as the law of God. This explains why a survey found widespread support for sharia among Muslims in Indonesia. But there is a huge difference between supporting or accepting sharia, and applying it as the law that replaces the formal state law. Even among Muslims scholars around the world, the jury is still out whether one should rigidly apply sharia, or whether what matters most are its spirit and moral teachings.

Most Muslims in Indonesia would arguably support the second, but not the first proposition. Existing models where sharia has been applied, either moderately or rigidly, are not comforting. Iran, Sudan, Afghanistan under the Taliban regime, and even neighboring Malaysia, have shown that with the introduction of sharia comes the suppression of individual freedoms and discrimination against non-Muslims.

The outcome of the 2004 elections, in which the combined share of the votes of the parties with a clear Islamist agenda was less than 20 percent, is probably a better measure of the real political support the introduction of sharia in Indonesia enjoys. This in a country where nearly 90 percent of the population are Muslims. The message of the election, which also saw Yudhoyono voted into office, could not be clearer.

One would have thought that the lengthy and democratic debate over the constitutional amendment from 2000 to 2002, during which the nation overwhelmingly rejected the application of sharia for Muslims in Indonesia, should have put this issue behind us once and for all.

Indonesia's founding fathers (and mothers) went through this democratic debate in 1945 to lay the foundations for a secular and pluralist state. We had our share of bloody civil wars in the 1950s too to determine this issue.

Sadly, those with an Islamist agenda are clearly not giving up their struggle. They seem determined to forever hold this nation back from forging itself on the premises of diversity and plurality.

As a nation, we seem to have moved very little on this front in spite of the blood, sweat and tears shed. It's like running on a treadmill. We have sweated a lot, but we have not moved an inch. Surely, it is time we switch to a real running track. And it would certainly help if our leaders switched to a new pair of sneakers that told them: Just Do it.

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