Indonesia's Largest Islamic Group Seeks End to `Infidel' Usage
- Non-Muslims have equal standing in state affairs, group says
- Religious issues creating political and social divisions
Photographer: Adek Berry/AFP via Getty Images
Indonesia’s largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, has issued a call to end the usage of “infidel” or “kafir” to refer to non-Muslims in state or citizenship matters, a move that may be aimed at calming religious tensions ahead of the presidential election.
Nahdlatul Ulama, with around 140 million members, said at its recent National Conference that non-Muslims shouldn’t be referred to as “kafir” as they have equal standing in state affairs. The conference concluded non-Muslims should be referred to as “muwathin,” or citizens with the same rights and obligations as Muslim Indonesians, according to Ahmad Muntaha, an Islamic scholar and secretary of Nahdlatul Ulama’s East Java Ulema Assembly.