enforcing religious freedom in indonesia 119
of Islam] will be blocked by someone with absolute authority [i.e., a
prophet].’ ‘The only absolute truth that is left, is the Qurʾan’, he added.
The way out of the Ahmadiyah controversy, according to Masdar,
would require two separate developments: the state should protect the
basic rights of all citizens and mainstream Muslims should become more
mature, with the faithful realising that it is not their responsibility to
homogenise society. The two steps should remain separated, Masdar
said, as ‘[t]he state does not have the right to judge whether beliefs are
right or wrong’.
The general chairman of the nu, Said Aqil Siradj, although quick to
denounce the Cikeusik violence and to call for harsh measures against the
perpetrators, in his public statements stressed that Ahmadiyah teachings
are not in line with those of the nu. However, he has been careful not to
use the word ‘deviant’. ‘The Ahmadiyah teachings are rejected by all of
Islam, that is true. But we cannot abuse them [Ahmadis]’, he explained.
He also said violence would only increase the distance between Ahmadis
and mainstream Muslims, so the only solution to the problem would
be a civilised dialogue to bring Ahmadis back on the right track: ‘I,
from nu, am ready for a discussion, a dialogue with Ahmadiyah. An
objective discussion, not one to berate or harrass.’ With talks, Said Aqil
said, Ahmadis could accept the offer to return to the true teachings.
‘Insya Allah, if the result is that a part of the Ahmadiyah community
returns to Sunni Islam, alhamdulillah. I am not aiming for all of them to
return to Sunni Islam.’⁴⁶ When asked about the possibility of disbanding
Ahmadiyah, Said Aqil said such a step fell within the domain of the state,
and therefore was beyond the nu’s reach.⁴⁷ He also called acts like those
in Cikeusik ‘signs of a society that is uncultured and unethical’.⁴⁸
The nu’s Dewan Syuriah in an official explanation of its stance on
the issue (taushiyah) said in relation to the Cikeusik incident that ‘the
teachings about Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s prophethood that are followed
by Ahmadiyah are not in line with the creed ofahlu-sunnah wal-jamaʾah
[mainstream traditionalist (non-modernist) Sunni Islam]’. It also said
Imam Maruf, ‘pbnu: Penyerangan Ahmadiyah adalah tindakan biadab’,Kabar
Haji, 7 February 2011, http://kabarhaji.com/kabar/1716/pbnu-penyerangan
-ahmadiyah-adalah-tindakan-biadab (accessed 3 October 2011).
Edy M. Yaʾkub, ‘nu, Ahmadiyah, dan fpi’,Antara, 5 March 2011, http://www.antaranews
.com/berita/248702/nu-ahmadiyah-dan-fpi (accessed 3 October 2011).
‘Penyerangan terhadap Ahmadiyah: Membenturkan Umat Islam kepada Negara’,
Al Kisah Magazine, 16 February 2011, http://majalah-alkisah.com/index.php/
component/content/article/799-penyerangan-terhadap-ahmadiyah
-membenturkan-umat-islam-kepada-negara (accessed 23 November 2011).