Ulema Council chairman: Indonesia is in unrest because of the presence of radicals

Indonesia prides itself on a certain image it tries to project to the outside world: one in which the country strikes a harmonious balance between politics and religion, as mandated by the country’s constitution and ideals.

But those of us who live here know that, in reality, religion is often used by certain individuals and groups to benefit their political agendas. We are, of course, seeing this phenomenon rear its ugly head in the ongoing Jakarta gubernatorial election, which has caused a lot of religious tension not just in the capital, but across the whole of Indonesia as well.

Ma’ruf Amin, chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), the nation’s highest authority for Islamic scholars, recently urged the public to respect the balance between religion and politics in Indonesia, in accordance with the state ideology of Pancasila and the constitution.

However, he believes that Indonesia is currently in a state of religious unrest – not because of religion itself, but because of those who hold radical beliefs.

Ma’ruf said that radical groups, particularly Islamic ones, came into existence in Indonesia due to a misunderstanding over the word “jihad” in the era of globalization.

“Jihad isn’t always necessarily translated to mean war, but also introspection, improving one’s self in times of peace,” Ma’ruf said, as quoted by Republika.

That’s all well and good, but is MUI just distancing itself from radical groups for appearance’s sake?

You might remember that it was the MUI who meddled in politics and issued a fatwa declaring that Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama committed blasphemy against Islam, which in turn legitimized and fuelled hardline groups like the Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) to carry out mass protests which increased their influence in the public sphere.

In the face of rising religious tension in Indonesia, President Joko Widodo last week issued a statement urging the nation to separate religion and politics. He even called on ulemas to help promote peace and tolerance in the country.