Syafii Ma'arif's impressive new memoir

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 06/29/2006 4:25 PM  |  Opinion

Jusuf Wanandi, Jakarta

It was a great honor and privilege for me to launch Prof. Syafii Ma'arif's memoir, which was just released by the Yogyakarta-based Ombak publishing house in May 2006.

He is one of our few statesmen who has shown what it means to be a great Muslim leader, trusted not only by Muslims, but by all Indonesian people. He also has shown through words, thoughts and examples what it means to be a moderate Muslim. He tries and has been able to reconcile Islam with democracy, pluralism and humanity.

His memoir reflects all these capabilities and achievements. It contains much more than his thinking on Islam. He has given his thoughts on society and the state. He has also shared his insights on how Muhammadiyah, the second-biggest Muslim social organization, which he led for almost 10 years, has been faring.

His autobiography is well written and easy to understand, because he uses plain language and is very clear about what he wants to say. He is very straightforward in expressing his thoughts, but he presents them in an acceptable way, so as not to hurt people's feelings for nothing.

This could be one of the reasons why nobody has hard feelings about him, given what he has said on many things. For instance, on the relationship between the state and Islam, he has been very blunt in stating that he does not accept the implementation of sharia in Indonesia.

He has told the conservative groups who are still supporting the idea that they are going to fail again, as so many did earlier. He has argued that the experiences of many centuries ago are no longer useful in solving modern problems and challenges, especially since many societies have become pluralistic in nature.

For him, the first principle of Pancasila, Belief in God, guarantees that religions including Islam will be present to motivate the Indonesian society. Indonesia is not a secular state in the sense commonly used in the West. Religion and Islam can play a legitimate and important role in it.

Another reason he has won such broad acceptance is his unwillingness to harm others. He has never been a politician, a role seen by many Indonesians as myopic and ruled by self-interest.

But more than his discourse on the principles of Islam and society, his memoir shows the forces that shaped his life and personality. The part in which he talks about his family and his village, Sumpur Kudus, is very moving. It shows how refined he is emotionally. Especially when he writes about the mother he never knew because she passed away when he was only 18 months old.

He also writes about his wife and his children, especially the first two, who died very young due to sickness. One passed away in West Sumatra when he was studying in Yogyakarta. He did not come from a very poor family, but he was from a very isolated place in West Sumatra where electricity was only introduced last year due to his efforts.

A strong desire to gain knowledge brought him to other places in West Sumatra, such as Lintau, as well as Yogyakarta and Lombok. Later he went to Ohio and Chicago in the United States, as well as to Canada and Malaysia.

In choosing to become a teacher and a professor, he opted for a simple life, which at the beginning was very challenging for his wife and child. But he was happy and thankful for his family, his village, and his organizations, as well as the universities that contributed to his achievements and his joy.

His expressions of love for his family, friends and village were very touching. He tried to return their help by assisting them in all kinds of things, such as scholarships, and bringing electricity to Sumpur Kudus.

His education in Islam started very early in Sumpur Kudus, and he went all the way through Muhammadiyah schools until he finished high school. His Muhammadiyah soul was created very early.

In developing his ideas on Islam, he acknowledged the influence of a great thinker and professor, Fazlur Rahman from Chicago University. That changed his basic ideas on Islam and the state, as well as on other aspects of Islam, including its history.

Based on his idea that state implementation of sharia would not solve modern society's problem and challenges, he also thinks that a Muslim state, or a caliphate as proposed by some radical groups, would be inappropriate for a modern and plural society such as Indonesia.

He feels other religious minority groups in Indonesia have the same status as Islam, because we are all part of one nation, and also of one humanity. That is why democracy, as long as implemented honestly, based on social justice, may be the best form of state for our pluralistic society.

He also feels women have the same rights as men, for instance in public and governmental jobs. And he argues Islam basically favors monogamy and opposes polygamy, because the limitations on polygamy, especially those requiring all wives to be treated equally, are so stringent that it is only possible in emergencies and as an exception.

He argues that the source of Islam should be the Koran itself and not other people's interpretations. If one studies the Koran seriously and consistently, one will get the real teachings of Islam.

This is a breath of fresh air for Indonesians, especially for minorities. Moderate Islam, and particularly a young generation of scholars including the ones cultivated by Prof. Syafii Ma'arif in Muhammadiyah while he was heading it until 2005, have come up with balanced thoughts and ideas on how to make Islam relevant for a modern and plural society.

They still have to struggle against conservative ideas and against the radical groups who have been influential before in Indonesian history. But the pioneering works of Syafii Ma'arif, Gus Dur, Nurcholish Madjid, and Azyumardi Azra have opened a new horizon for Islam in Indonesia. This augurs well for Pak Syafii Ma'arif and his idea that Islam in Southeast Asia and South Asia could be the catalyst for reforms in Islam worldwide, since the Middle East, where Islam originated, still needs a long period of social, political and economic development to be able to develop new ideas and thoughts about Islam.

It is important to show first, however, that Islam in Southeast and South Asia can be successful in adjusting and modernizing its societies and democracies, and that social justice is for everyone.

Second, the reformist Islamic thoughts of Indonesia and Malaysia, Pakistan and Bangladesh have to be known and should be debated by Islamic societies worldwide in order to have real influence. Thus, their works have to be written or translated into Arabic and English.

The last part of his memoir is about his work in Muhammadiyah, especially when for almost two terms (10 years) he was in charge. He began as deputy to the Chair, his friend Amien Rais, who was too busy doing political reforms during the last years of the Soeharto regime. He shares a lot of insight into the inner developments and struggles of Muhammadiyah, which have been very enlightening. He shows how Muhammadiyah has had to face the challenge of political developments during the last years of Soeharto and the reform eras afterwards.

He also explains the efforts of Muhammadiyah to keep some distance from political developments in Indonesia. His explanations are very useful for those who are interested in the second-biggest Muslim social organization in Indonesia, which has played an important role in keeping Islam on a moderate and mainstream course.

The memoir of Pak Syafii Ma'arif is very interesting in describing his formative years, life in the village, his struggles as a scholar and as a Muslim cadre in Muhammadiyah, and his main perceptions and ideas about Islam.

He is definitely one of our few influential, listened-to statesmen in Indonesia. He is the nation's teacher. He has the leadership ability to promote ideas and move people to undertake the real reforms that are needed in Indonesia.

Let us hope that he can stay among us for a while yet, and that through his institute Syafii Ma'arif can continue to give his intellectual and moral guidance to the Indonesian people at large.

The writer is vice chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Jakarta.

Copyright © 2008 The Jakarta Post - PT Bina Media Tenggara. All Rights Reserved.