Nobel Prize, NU, and Muhammadiyah
The reputation of Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah as guardians of tolerance culture and pillars of civil society in Indonesia was the main theme at a two-day seminar in Oslo, Norway on June 19-20.
No less interesting was the discussion about the struggle of the NU and Muhammadiyah as a fence and fortress for pluralism in Indonesia in the face of the onslaught of extremists and radicals, who have aggressively promoted intolerance in recent years.
For their strategic and vital role as the country’s two-largest Islamic social organizations, Indonesian intellectuals and members of civil society have jointly nominated NU-Muhammadiyah as candidates for the Nobel Peace Prize, the most prestigious award in the world.
The support of a number of international figures, such as former East Timorese President Jose Ramos Horta, who won the 1996 Nobel Peace Prize, was echoed even stronger in the two-day seminar in Oslo, the special headquarters of the Nobel Peace Committee.
Present at the seminar at Oslo Metropolitan University or the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) included academics, scholars,several ambassadors from Asia and the Middle East, government officials, Norwegian civil society figures and a number of Indonesian students studying in Europe.
Speakers from Indonesia were Indonesian Ambassador to Norway Todung Mulya Lubis, Prof. Franz Magnis-Suseno, Prof. Azyumardi Azra, chairman of the NU ‘s executive board, Marsudi Syuhud, the secretary-general of Muhammadiyah Abdul Mu\'ti and Yenny Wahid from the Wahid Institute.
The Indonesian delegation also included Philips Vermonte from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Nezar Patria from The Jakarta Post and Dhohir Farisi from the Ansor Youth Movement.
It was not known whether there was a Nobel Committee envoy in the seminar. The Nobel Committee always works secretively to maintain confidentiality.
Franz Magnis publicly said he and his colleagues supported the NU-Muhammadiyah nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
In a seminar on the "Challenges of Extremist Islam in Indonesia" held by the Indonesian Embassy and PRIO on June 20, Franz Magnis stressed that the NU and Muhammadiyah deserved the award because the two organizations had contributed to maintaining religious tolerance, maintaining brotherhood and unity for the plurality of the Indonesian nation.
Various social and religious groups in Indonesia are comfortable in establishing communication and cooperation with the NU and Muhammadiyah.
Azyumardi Azra ,at the same forum, explained the role of the NU and Muhammadiyah in maintaining the distinctive character of Islam in Indonesia, which emphasize moderate, inclusive, accommodating, wasatiyah ([justly balanced or middle-path Islam) principles.
Furthermore, he explained that the NU and Muhammadiyah played an important role in maintaining social cohesion and national unity amid social and political and economic crises, such as during the transition from the New Order to the Reform Era.
Regarding Pancasila, Azra said the country\'s ideology was adaptive with the middle path principle carried out by the NU and Muhammadiyah. The main values of Pancasila are basically in line with Islamic teachings.
Azra believes that as long as the NU and Muhammadiyah maintain the middle path principle and safeguard Pancasila as the state ideology, extremist groups will never excel, including in the struggle of political parties to fight for power and government.
Backbone
When opening the seminar, Todung Mulya Lubis revealed the face of Indonesian Islam, which is moderate, tolerant, inclusive and embracing various other groups. Islam coexists peacefully with other religions in Indonesia.
However, he acknowledged, during the past decade, Indonesia has faced the rise of religious extremism and fundamentalism.
Todung believes that the NU and Muhammadiyah are the backbone of the nation in facing the brunt of extremist and fundamentalist movements in Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Yenny Wahid said the challenges facing the NU and Muhammadiyah in blocking extremist movements were not easy to deal with. The NU and Muhammadiyah speak out about the dangers of extremist movements.
Yenny also mentioned various field works across religions and social groups in maintaining harmony, peace, brotherhood and togetherness for a pluralistic Indonesian nation.
In the seminar entitled "The Role of Civil Society in Facing Radicalism in Indonesia" at Metropolitan Oslo University, the NU’s executive board chairman, Marsudi Syuhud, reminded of the increasing dangers of extremist threats.
The history of the NU\'s struggle as a socio-religious organization, which has maintained tolerance, peace and diversity, dates back to its inception in 1926. The NU is a founder of the Indonesian nation and supporter of Pancasila.
Another speaker, the secretary-general of Muhammadiyah, Abul Mu\'ti, explained the role of Muhammadiyah in promoting the principles of moderate and peaceful Islam since its establishment in 1912.
Mu\'ti explained that Muhammadiyah was a civil society organization that was active in social, education, health and economic fields. Muhammadiyah schools are not only for its members but are open to all components of the nation.
Strictly speaking, he said, Muhammadiyah was among the founders of the Indonesian nation, a defender of Pancasila, and an organization that rejected extremism.
In response, Prof. Elisabeth Eide from Metropolitan University hoped that efforts to restrain extremism did not violate human rights or freedom of expression.
Separately, researchers from PRIO, such as Marte Nilsen and Trond Bakkevig, suggested that Indonesia be more proactive in spreading the principles of moderate and peaceful Islam to the Middle East and other world regions.
Obviously, the two-day seminar in Oslo not only talked about the Nobel Peace Prize but also introduced Indonesia to the Nordic region. Not all of the world community knows that Indonesia is the third-largest democracy in the world after India and the United States. Perhaps, due to the lack of promotion, not many people are aware of Indonesia\'s increasing economic power and the fact that it has become a member of the G-20 with the support of its 260 million people, and its rich in various natural resources on the equatorial track.