Religion Conflict: From Political to Intellectual Disputes by Joko Wicoyo

I think it is interesting and important to examine the characteristic of Indonesian Muslims in terms of how their understanding of Islam related to how they manifest Islam in their behaviour political life in Indonesia which has already decided Pancasila as the way of life and philosophical and ideological principal of the state. This examination will reveal the plurality of Islamic phenomena which contributes the diverse reality of Indonesian Muslims. It relates the differences in religious interpretation which bears different interest in establishing political parties.

Islam in Indonesian political point of views produces a diversity of political perspective as it has developed over the past three centuries. Central to such diversity has been the division of Indonesian society along religious cultural political lines, ranging from the strongly Islamic perspective to the nominally or even non-Islamic.

It can be perceived from the division between modernist and traditionalist orientation. The first modernist organization is Muhammadiyah established in 1912, the avowedly political Partai Sarekat Islam Indonesia (PSSI), the politically assertive Masyumi, the most influential Islamic party in the 1950s before its dissolution in 1960 by Presidential Decree; and Partai Muslimin (Parmusi) established in 1966. Their modernist thought and organization developed most rapidly in the urban areas of Java-Sumatra – the areas known for their cosmopolitan, urban and commercial character developed through centuries of cultural contact and trade.
On the other hand, Islamic traditionalism has received its political and social expression through the existence of Nahdatul Ulama (NU) which was established in 1926 by a number of East Javanese ulama who united to combat the threat presented to their traditionalist beliefs by the rapid growth of Muhammadiyah. In this case, political and intellectual disputes among their followers may happen quite often and increase to high conflict and high tension.

I think contemporary Indonesian Islamic conception of politics and power are derived from both the ideal and pragmatic variants of classical theory as well as from historical experience of the Islamic penetration in Indonesia. It can be perceived since the beginning of the Republic of Indonesia when an Investigative Committee for the Preparation of Indonesian Independence (Badan Penyelidik Usaha Persiapan Kemerdekaan) discussed the outlining the political structure and it deadlocked on the thorny issue of Islam’s role in the state. It happened too after the Indonesian declaration of independence when the Muslims should drop seven words to the first principle of the Pancasila, and during the first years of independence, this compromise formulation remained the focus of heated political controversy. Frankly speaking it cannot be denied that Islamic organizations have been playing important roles in shaping political parties in Indonesia in the last three decades although they have got high penetration from the state especially in the era of the New Order with its political issue “Asas Tunggal”, Pancasila was the only principal of any political organization in Indonesia.