Febriamy Hutapea – The Indonesian Council of Ulema, or MUI, went too far when it banned Muslims from abstaining from voting, House of Representatives Speaker Agung Laksono said on Tuesday.
"To vote or not to vote is purely a political matter, and not in the religious domain," he said. "It can't be forced and shouldn't be linked to religion."
Agung said the religious edict issued over the weekend by the MUI would mislead people because the Constitution did not require people to carry out their right to vote.
"Participating in elections is a political right, so we can't judge those who abstain," he said, calling the ruling from the country's highest authority on Islam "not proper." "It will not be effective in boosting people's participation in the elections," Agung said.
About 700 Muslim leaders gathered in Padang Panjang, West Sumatra Province, from Friday to Monday to discuss a number of contentious issues, ultimately issuing rulings on smoking, voting, yoga and abortion.
"As long as there is a candidate that is Muslim, honest, intelligent and ready to fight for the Indonesian people, it is 'haram' for Muslims to abstain from voting," Umar Shihab, the chairman of the MUI, said on Monday. "[But] it is forbidden for Muslims to vote for a non-Muslim."
Agung said the rising number of undecided voters should be a message to political parties to select better candidates. He also blamed the low voter turnout in previous elections on the poor performance of political parties in gaining public trust.
The chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly, Hidayat Nur Wahid, first proposed banning Muslims from not voting as a way to boost participation in the elections.
"I support the fatwa," Hidayat said. "I hope this can improve the performance of government, the General Elections Commission, legislative candidates and the political parties involved in the election process."
Hidayat said a prominent Islamic leader had confused Muslims by encouraging them to abstain in the upcoming elections.
Former President Abdurrahman Wahid, who is involved a power struggle within his National Awakening Party, has called on his supporters to stay away from the polls as a form of protest.