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A sign of things to come in modern, moderate Indonesia. "Indonesia: People Trust Clerics More Than The President, Says Survey," from AKI, with thanks to Sr. Soph:
Jakarta, 16 May (AKI/Jakarta Post) - Politicians have never been regarded as the most popular of people, and a recent leadership survey by the Islamic and Societal Research Center (PPIM) in Indonesia would seem to suggest that nothing has changed. The survey, which ran from January through March this year, revealed that Indonesians trusted their religious leaders more than any other individual or institution, including the president."Our survey shows that 41 percent of respondents say that they trust the country's religious leaders, while an equal 22 percent of them lay their trust with the president and the Indonesian military," PPIM executive chairman Jajat Burhanuddin told a media conference, as quoted by detik.com news portal.
"Another 16 percent say they can trust the police institution, and an equal 11 percent trust the People's Consultative Assembly and the House of Representatives. And only 8 percent of the respondents said they trust the political parties," he added.
The survey questioned 200 respondents between 16 and 70 years of age. Some 42 percent of them lived in the cities, and the remaining 58 percent in villages.
Jajat said the survey showed that religious factors played a more significant role than politics.
Prominent Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra said the survey also pinpointed the fact that the state institution was weaker than religious ones. "Our state institution is on a declining trend."
Hmmm. Why is that?
Posted by Robert at May 16, 2007 6:55 AM
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I trust more in my catholic leaders than in Zapatero for example, and the politics in Indonesia are synonim of corruption. But islam of course isn´t the solution, but we have to allow that an islamist regime make the people release it, or not? I don´t know.
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at May 16, 2007 7:08 AM
"a recent leadership survey by the Islamic and Societal Research Center (PPIM) in Indonesia"
Who did they ask exactly? mostly muslims i guess, which is why they got them results.
Surveys are a waste of space anyway.
Posted by: Demvaril at May 16, 2007 7:29 AM
Aren't the teeming masses in Indonesia extremely uneducated? Which explains a lot.
Posted by: darcy at May 16, 2007 7:49 AM
If a similar poll was conducted in most countries I doubt if the results would be much different in regard to the leading politicians. Most people know they are lying bastards who would sell their best friend down the river for a hand full of votes. How many times have you seen them back stab their most trusted colleges so they could advance one more rung on the ladder on the good ship Deception. They are experts at it. These figures don’t surprise me at all.
Posted by: Freedom at May 16, 2007 8:23 AM
What happened to Hugh's post ?
Posted by: Freedom at May 16, 2007 8:26 AM
Freedom:
Sometimes Hugh writes a post and then decides to make it into a separate article.
Here it is:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/dhimmiwatch/archives/016466.php
Cordially
Robert Spencer
at May 16, 2007 8:47 AM
Prominent Muslim scholar Azyumardi Azra said the survey also pinpointed the fact that the state institution was weaker than religious ones. "Our state institution is on a declining trend."
Hmmm. Why is that?
The sheer level of corruption in the country.
Suharto's era (1965 - 1998) was a legendary byword for corruption on a vast scale.
It is was also in his era that the Asian Financial crisis occured (1997) and the wealth of the country was reduced - people noticed.
I dont think the successive Presidents of Indonesia altered the level of corruption that much. Indonesians know all this. So it is not surprising that they trust their clerics more.
We are not helped in the West that many Islamic countries are corrupt, processes are not transparent, leaders are not accountable. The net effect of this is to drive the ordinary Muslim into the arms of the clerics.
On another note:
It is a scandal that Paul Wolfowitz does not resign as head of the World Bank. Instead of the White House defending him, it should be insisting on his resignation. This reduces the goodstanding of America in the eyes of the rest of the world, and it sends a signal that America turns a blind eye to corruption. It is a scandal that Paul Wolfowitz "promoted" his girlfriend so that salary went from $132,660 to $193,950, higher than the Secretary of State, Dr Rice.
He should be made to resign.
at May 16, 2007 8:49 AM
Until the president is a cleric, of course.
Then all bets are off.
Posted by: profitsbeard at May 16, 2007 10:06 AM
"Only 22.8 percent of the respondents want Islamic sharia as the state's ideology... The much greater remaining percentage chose Pancasila," Jajat said. --from the article.
Puzzling results. I wonder what the options were (just sharia vs Pancasila, or were there other options?). 22.8% sounds low compared to what one might expect from other results from Indonesia:
‘strict application of Shari’a law in every Islamic country.’
Indonesia 17% strongly agree, 36% somewhat agree. total agree = 53%
‘to unify all Islamic countries into a single Islamic state or caliphate’
Indonesia 49% agreed while 40% disagreed.
http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/apr07/START_Apr07_rpt.pdf
http://www.westernresistance.com/blog/archives/003209.html
Lots of info here: Polls/Surveys Indonesians.
40% [of Indonesians] said they would employ violence against anyone seen to be blaspheming against Islam.
at May 16, 2007 11:12 AM
I wish I could remember who said this: Any poll run in a Muslim-majority country that is run by an Islamist organization will always come out with the results it intends to get.
Polls in Saudi Arabia always look good for the Wahhabis, despite open rebellion on dress and social manners in Jeddah. Why? Because you know they're marking your "anonymous" response with you name, rank and serial number.
Pancasila doctrine went to the vote again in Indonesia in 2003 when Yodhoyono -- the anti-Islamist former security chief -- won by a landslide of 87%. The Islamists were trounced in those elections, and Pancasila upheld by a similar margin and back by a tremendous majority of the "Islam Lite" general Muslim imamry.
Indonesians don't want shari'a law, and this poll shouldn't be proffered as any kind of indication that they do. It also may mean that the "holy man" has more respect than the sleazy, corrupt local officials who take bribes with one hand and issue dispensations with the other. Much, I would imagine, as the polls would go if people asked whether we respected our local ministers or Teddy Kennedy more? I'll go with the local minister even if I haven't yet met her, or him.
at May 16, 2007 4:05 PM
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