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Muslim groups oppose renaming Jakarta street after Turkey’s Ataturk
A Turkish government proposal to rename a street in Menteng, Central Jakarta, after the founding father of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, has drawn criticism from Indonesian ulema and an Islam-based opposition party.
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Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (center) arrives to attend a ceremony marking the 79th anniversary of the death of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, at the deceased leader’s mausoleum in Ankara on Nov. 10, 2017.
(AFP/Adem Altan)
T
he government’s plan to rename a street in Menteng, Central Jakarta, after the founding father of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, to reciprocate a similar gesture made by the Turkish government, has drawn criticism from Indonesian ulema and an Islam-based opposition party.
The move was proposed to deepen Indonesia and Turkey’s relationship, Indonesian Ambassador to Turkey Lalu Muhammad Iqbal said, adding that the Turkish government had already approved the Indonesian government's proposal to rename a street in front of the Indonesian embassy in Ankara after Indonesian founding father Sukarno.
“In line with diplomatic etiquette, we will name a street in Jakarta after the Turkish founding father,” Lalu said in a statement on Sunday, adding that the Turkish government would decide the name of the street.
“We are still waiting for the official proposal of the street’s name [from the Turkish government]. Whatever the name of the street, it will surely represent the hopes of the Turkish leader and people.”
While commending the desire to deepen Jakarta and Ankara’s ties, People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) deputy speaker Hidayat Nur Wahid said he was opposed to naming the street after Ataturk, asserting that it was not in line with Indonesia’s identity as a religious and democratic nation.
In return for the diplomatic gesture made by Turkey, he said, the government could select a less controversial Turkish figure to avoid public opposition to the plan.
“All sides in Indonesia support the deepening of Indonesia and Turkey’s [bilateral] relationship. But there are a lot of other Turkish figures who are less controversial and more acceptable to Indonesian Muslims, such as Sulaiman Al-Qanuny, Muhammad Al Fatih or Muslim poet Jalaludin Rumi, all of whom could reinforce the ties between the two countries,” Hidayat, who is also member of opposition Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said in a statement on Tuesday.
