Islam must be a blessing, solution: SBY

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, The Jakarta Post, Padang | Mon, 12/15/2008 10:33 AM  

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has reiterated newly declared national hero Mohammad Natsir's teachings that Islam serve as a blessing and a solution for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. 

Yudhoyono was speaking at a thanksgiving ceremony organized by the West Sumatra society for the awarding of the national hero title to Natsir, held at Indarung on Saturday evening. 

"We long for the emergence of Islamic figures who will eradicate misunderstandings about Islam. Islamophobia must be eliminated: that's what Natsir taught us," he said. 

Yudhoyono added that Natsir, who served as prime minister in 1950, embodied the true values and traits of Islam. 

This, he went on, was the third of four heroic values that could be learnt from Natsir, the first being Natsir's stance, right from the start, against imperialism and colonialism. 

Such a stance, Yudhoyono said, was needed in developing a just world order free from the control of a single world power. 

The second trait, Yudhoyono continued, was Natsir's integral motion that formed Indonesia into a unitary state, the importance of which was not merely tangible, but could also be actualized into development equality. 

Yudhoyono said the fourth heroic value Natsir embodied was his accomplishment in maintaining harmony between cultures. 

"We are still witnessing clashes of culture in many places. We need a bridge to develop a dialogue with a clear mind and heart," he said. 

The government named Natsir a national hero last month, although he had been nominated since 1994. 

Many believe the tardiness in approving the status was related to Natsir's involvement with the Revolutionary Government of the Republic of Indonesia (PRRI). 

The U.S.-backed PRRI was a regional military faction based in Bukittinggi, which from 1956 to 1958 advocated rebellion against the central government and first president Soekarno's rule. 

Yudhoyono admitted there were pitfalls in awarding national hero status, but added the decision was based on a detailed study that included recommendations from historians. 

"We have to respect the ins and outs of history. Let's leave it as it is. We must not judge it, much less give it an outrageous judgment," Yudhoyono told some 1,000 attendees at the ceremony. 

The President and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono were in the province to officially open the Batanghari Dam and oversee the harvest of hybrid rice in Dharmasraya regency, 200 kilometers from the West Sumatra capital of Padang. 

Also in the President's entourage were Agriculture Minister Anton Aprianto and Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto.