PEOPLE CALLED ON NOT TO LINK TERROR TO ISLAM

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, July 20 (ANTARA) - Various Muslim leaders and organizations are calling on all sides not to link Islam to terror attacks which killed nine people and injured more than 50 others in Jakarta last week.

        "Resorting to terror was not Islamic. Islam does not adopt that terror behavior. So, the bomb terror such as the bombings of two top hotels in South Jakarta on Friday has no link with Islam," chairman of the Islamic organization 'PB Trabiyah', Basri Bermanda, said on Sunday.

        A similar call was also made by the country's largest Muslim organization, the Nahdhatul Ulama (NU). "Terrorism is not a religion and so it is not correct to say Muslims were the mastermind of the bombings," the chairman of NU, Hasyim Muzadi, said.

        In the meantime, Muslim cleric Abubakar Ba'asyir who was once described as a hardliner extremist, said the perpetrators of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotel bombings in Jakarta were "enemies of Islam,"

        "Those who did the bombings have caused Muslims to become a scapegoat for terrorist acts," Abubakar Ba'asyir, former chairman of the Indonesian Mujaeedeen Council (MMI), said over the weekend.

        Therefore, both NU and the second largest Islamic organization 'Muhammadiyah,' condemned the barbaric attacks. "The terrorist act was inhumane," Muhammadiyah chief Din Syamsuddin said.

        Hence, Secretary General of the Islamic Community Forum (FUI) M Alkhaththath also called for all sides not to link the bombings to Islam. "One should not link the bomb blasts to the Muslim community and the recent presidential elections," the FUI secretary general said after a grand prayer on Sunday.

        The people should not speculate and link the bombing incidents to the Muslim community and the only recently concluded presidential elections in the country. "Muslims in Indonesia have no knowledge about bombs, much less about assembling them, neither they have access to bomb assemblers," Alkhaththatth said.

        So, it is impossible for Muslims to do the JW Marriott bombing. After all, most Muslims in Indonesia belonged to the 'Ahlussunnah wal Jamaah' group who practiced the prophet's tradition. "Most of Indonesia's population are Muslims and belong to the 'Ahlussunnah wal Jamaah' group. They do not adopt the extremist attitudes," Adnan Harahap, member of the Tarbiyah Islamiyah Organization's central executive board, said.

        Tarbiyah Islamiyah Organization chairman Basri Bermanda said resorting to terror was not Islamic so that bombing terrors such as the bomb blasts at the two top hotels in Jakarta had nothing to do with Islam. "Islam does not adopt terror such as bombings," he said.

        Basri Bermanda said that terrorist acts were against Islam but they could be done by quarters using the label of Islam or by non-Muslims who wanted to tarnish the image of Islam. He therefore refused to accept that Islam was identical with the symbol of violence and cruelty. "Islam teaches peace and goodness," he said.

        He said that if there were people who linked Islam with terrorism they did not know what Islam was really about.

        On the occasion, the organization's central executive board strongly condemned the bombings of the two hotels, saying the attacks could have been done with an intention to create chaos and political as well as economic instability.

        According to FUI Secretary General Alkhththath intelligence might have roles in it. "It is the security authorities, intelligence or military who know how to assemble bombs," he said.

        He wondered how people could bring the (explosive) materials into the hotels without being detected by security guards and their sophisticated equipment. They even could spend the night at the hotels.

        Abubakar Ba'asyir meanwhile said that the perpetrators of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotel bombings were "enemies of Islam," "Those who did the bombings have caused Muslims to become a scapegoat for terrorist acts," Ba'asyir said.

        He said "the acts of the enemies if Islam will lead to things compromising and oppressing the Muslim community." "It is possible, in the wake of the bombings, Islamist fighters will be rounded up and accused of involvement in the terrorist acts," he said.

        Islamic singer Rhoma Irama concurred with Ba'asyir view. He said terrorism was not a religious matter but a political problem and one must not mix them up, adding that religions did not teach terrorism.

        "The religion of the majority has always been made a scapegoat in cases of bombings with its followers accused of being the terrorists," he said.

        In Indonesia it was Islam that had always been blamed while in India it was the Hundhus and in Britain the Christians, he said. So, terror must not be associated with Islam, he said.

        Thus, NU chief Hasyim Muzadi, said the bombings in Jakarta should not be linked to Muslim. He said the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) had to unveil those behind the bombings which had caused people to suffer. "I certainly condemn the incidents that have claimed lives," he said .

        Muhmmadiyah chairman Din Syamsuddin also called on the people not to link terror acts to Islam. "The terrorist act is inhumane," Din Syamsuddin said.

        "The bombings in Jakarta were a terrorist act and not linked to religion. The government should immediately investigate the case thoroughly," he added. ***4*** (T.A014/A/H-NG/a014) (T.A014/A/A014/A/A014) 20-07-2009 11:01:32