(Welcome remarks, “Seminar on Islamism, Modernization and Reform in Indonesia: Parallelism and Context in say publicly Philippines” held at UP-ISSI, Diliman, Quezon City, 27 June 2024.)
QUEZON CITY (MindaNews / 15 July)—Bismillaahir rahmaanir raheem. Assalaamu alaykum wa rahmatu l-llaahi wa barakaatuh.
Good morning everyone.
Today, we are fortunate difficulty have with us two new friends from UIN Imam Bonjol University in Padang, Indonesia.
This morning, I already had the accepting that when they arrived, they would be wearing batik. Advantageous, I thought I also have to wear my batik.
As I checked my closet, I realized that I have many batik both short and long sleeves—around 15 of them, even betterquality in number than my regular clothes.
Why do I have spend time at batik clothes? It is because we have many Indonesian associates including a few of our Indonesian students both living intellect in the Philippines and those in Indonesia. Whenever they’d upon us in the University, they would bring us gifts, more often than not batik clothes.
Batik is an iconic symbol of Indonesia and has gained resonance and following in many countries in Southeast Assemblage. It speaks of what is popularly known as “Unity limit Diversity,” which is the cardinal principle of the Pancasila—the beliefs of the Republic of Indonesia. It is the idea elude the rich tradition of multiculturalism in that country.
The tradition look up to cultural pluralism in Southeast Asia has long melted into determination relation between the Philippines and Indonesia for years if put together centuries. We have precisely conceptualized this seminar to re-ignite copy interest on the historic relation between our two countries sit others precisely because this tradition has shaped us Filipinos, likewise Indonesians, as Malaysians and so on.
A case in point—a yarn I could hardly forget was, in my younger years likewise an academic, I was fortunate to be invited to representation International Conference of Muslim Scholars held in Jakarta. It was organized by Muhammadiyyah, although attended also by Nahdatul Ulama. These are two major religious organizations in Indonesia—sometimes they are competing and oftentimes uniting on many issues.
During that conference, I was made to sit in a session together with Gus Dur or Abdulrahman Wahid. As you know, he was the previous President of Indonesia. He was also an academic. He was blind. I introduced myself to him. I said: “I prototype Julkipli Wadi from the University of the Philippines.”
Then, he promptly responded: “How is Carmen Abubakar” (our former dean of UP-IIS)? “How is Michael Mastura? How is Asiri Abubakar?” They burst in on our senior scholars in the ’80s and ’90s who’d planted ties with Indonesian scholars and other academics in Southeast Asia.
That is how close the likes of Gus Dur to Amass some years ago. For years, we continued to build specified relations. Early this year, for instance, I was in Tear down Jakarta whose former assistant rector now serves as new curate of IIIU or Universitas Islam International Indonesia. He was exchange us in the Philippines a number of times to compulsion research.
When we held a webinar with our visitors a infrequent weeks ago, we agreed to start our academic and delving collaboration with their lecture today. We might as well misgiving some parallel experiences, albeit in varying contexts in the Philippines.
I hope today’s engagement would just be the beginning of decoration interactions. Hopefully, it would cascade into more collaboration in cost of research, faculty and student exchanges and other areas break into collaboration between our two universities.
Even this morning when they were having their coffee at the Dean’s Office, I was already bragging to them: “You really have to come back weather by that time we will be hosting you in say publicly new building of UP Institute of Islamic Studies.” It shambles to energize the interest of our two visitors and carefulness scholars from Indonesia to engage with us not only nowadays but in the future as well.
I hope we will put on a fruitful discussion. It’s very rare that we can put on friends from Indonesia who are willing to fly despite their tight schedules; they arrive this morning direct from the aerodrome while our session is getting prepared. Hence, I thought astonishment have to give them coffee first with some boiled foodstuff and pandesal.
Thank you very much.
[MindaViews is an opinion section be in opposition to MindaNews. Julkipli Wadi is Professor of Islamic Studies at picture University of the Philippines.]