The Nationalism of Nahdlatul Ulama

KOMPAS/YUNIADHI AGUNG

Ahmad Najib Burhani

"My heirloom, O my homeland

The love of my faith.”

Mars Yalal Wathon

In his article "The Death of Gus Dur and the Birth of the New Habitus of Indonesian Diversity" (2016), Ahmad Suaedy wrote that Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) fully accepted Pancasila and nationalism only in 1984, when the country’s largest Muslim organization explained Pancasila and nationality using the language of sharia.

However, that spirit has now become – to borrow from Pierre Bourdieu (1984) – the organization’s new habitus. NU\'s approach towards Pancasila and Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia (HTI), which has emerged recently, is a manifestation of this habitus.

In developing the momentum from the 1980s, Gerakan Pemuda Anshor, the youth wing of NU, explored and reworked the song "Yalal Wathon" (“Ya Ahlal Wathon”, or “O Son of the Nation”) in 2013, based on the narrative of K.H. Maimun Zubair, of Rembang regency. The new song, which celebrates love of our homeland, was not in circulation before then.

Those who were born and raised in NU families had rarely heard this song at the many meetings and activities of NU before 2013. It became a new phenomenon that reinforced nationalism that eventually became a tradition of the organization, which held a national assembly and grand conference on Feb. 27-March 1, 2019 in Banjar, West Java.

Digging further, the Islam-nationalism combination in NU can also be found in its various slogans and names: Garda Bangsa, the name of the National Awakening Party’s (PKB) civil security force; Pagar Nusa, NU’s martial arts form; and of course, the Resolusi Jihad (Jihad Resolution) of Oct. 22, 1945, are important milestones that reinforce NU\'s sense of nationalism.

Therefore, it is unsurprising that the organization is very firm in fighting the various movements trying to disrupt the nation-state. NU appears to have taken up the duty of cancut tali wondo (to use all available resources) against the demands to establish an Islamic caliphate and the wishes of some to realize a "Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) with sharia".

The NU’s high enthusiasm for nationalism and Indonesian-ness has indeed entrapped its members in creating – to borrow from Kevin W. Fogg (2018) – Revisionist NU History. This, for example, can be seen in Yahya Cholil Staquf’s “Islamist politics in Indonesiab ‘reform’”(2018).

Staquf explains in his article that, in the 1950s and 1960s, NU’s Wahab Hasbullah played an important role in blocking Masyumi’s efforts to restore the Jakarta Charter and turning Indonesia into an Islamic country.

Of course, this claim is not based on the widely available historical data, but rather on a nationalistic spirit that yearns to demonstrate NU’s high sense of nationalism. In fact, NU was then supporting democratic efforts to revive the Jakarta Charter and to turn Indonesia into an Islamic country. Even without "revising" history like this, NU\'s role in developing nationalism can never be doubted.

Nationwide umbrella

NU’s high spirit of nationalism must certainly be expanded into a nationwide umbrella, or a roof over the nation. What can easily derail large organizations like NU, and also Muhammadiyah, is growing to believe that it is Indonesia or the most authentic representation of Nusantara (the Indonesian archipelago). In fact, Indonesia cannot be reduced as simply Islamic or Javanese, or even a group of santri (strict adherents of orthodox Islam), NU or Muhammadiyah, because this nation is pluralistic in terms of religious understanding, religion, ethnicity, and so on. It is undeniable that all parties contribute to and have a specific role in building and maintaining the nation.

The initial effort to become a nationwide roof or umbrella already began with K.H. Ma\'ruf Amin, who promoted Islam Wasatiyyah (moderate Islam), rather than the Islam Nusantara that is typical of NU.

This is what needs continual development by, for example, avoiding claims as the “true Islam” and the desire to control all Cabinet seats or to turng Indonesia in a "country of santri". Being the nation\'s roof is not an easy matter, which sometimes requires forming uneasy alliances with certain groups that it dislikes or those that do not share the same ideals. However, this is the consequence and challenges of being a country with a pluralistic society.

Indeed, many NU members feel that the organization has not been recognized for its contribution to nationalism. For example, NU\'s contributions to the Indonesian National Revolution are not visible among the reliefs and statues of the National Monument (Monas). There are one or two pictures of Islamic boarding schools, but they are not associated with NU, and other religions and religious groups have been given more space.

To conclude, NU is a large organization with tens of millions of followers that can be highly influential both socially and politically. By default, this great strength means that NU has an equally great responsibility for Indonesia in maintaining both its diversity and its progress.

“With great power comes great responsibility.”

(Ahmad Najib Burhani, Senior Researcher, Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI))