Presidential election not War of Badr: MUI

Jakarta (Antara) - General chairman of the Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI) Din Syamsuddin said it was too much to liken the upcoming presidential election as a "War of Badr" between Muslims and infidels during Prophet Muhammad's era. "Personally, I do not agree with it. The War of Badr is a war between Muslims and polytheists, while those who are contesting in the next election are all Muslims. So, it is unwise to liken the election to a War of Badr, and it is also unnecessary," he said at the MUI headquarters here on Thursday. He said he urged the people, especially Muslims who are eligible to vote, to use their right in the election and not be provoked by irresponsible parties, especially now before the election when sensitive issues of religious, racial, tribal and group differences, locally known as "SARA," have been used for malicious campaigning. "Let us not be trapped into animosity and conflicts that can lead to divisions. Let everyone choose according to his/her conscience," he said. The chairman of the advisory board of the National Mandate Party (PAN), Amien Rais, had previously called for the use of the spirit of the War of Badr in the upcoming election. PAN is one of the political parties that support the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa, the presidential and vice presidential candidate pair, for the election. Hatta Rajasa is the general chairman of PAN. Meanwhile, PAN's deputy general chairman Drajad Wibowo has accused certain parties of spinning Amien Rais' statement. Jusuf Kalla, the running mate of Joko Widodo (Jokowi) who is Prabowo's rival in the election, has deplored Amie Rais' statement. "Let us not talk about animosity. We regret the statement about the War of Badr. Indonesia must not be turned into Afghanistan, Egypt or Syria. We love peace," he said. (*) Reporting by Anom Prihantoro