 The Jakarta Post, Oct. 18, 2006Alpha Amirrachman, Contributor, Jakarta
When
Australian Jordan Newton visited Persatuan Islam (Persis) Islamic
school in Bandung last August for a dialog with its students, he was
confronted with an inconceivable, yet intriguing question from one of
the students: "Is it true that there is a deal between the Vatican, the
U.S. and Israel that if Tibo's execution is canceled, Israel will stop
attacking Lebanon?"
The question was
timely: The execution of the three Catholics accused of murdering
Muslims in Poso was delayed allegedly due to international pressure. It
was also the peak of Israel's military offensive to wipe out Hizbollah
in Lebanon.
Newton was bewildered, trying to answer
diplomatically that although the Vatican, the U.S. and Israel are oddly
classified as "the West" , they don't always agree on everything, and
that such a conspiracy theory was just absurd.
What is clear is
that he was presented with a fresh experience of how some sectors in
Indonesia still have a very limited understanding of the West. This, he
said, also applies to the often love-hate relations between Indonesia
and Australia.
"Acute lack of knowledge on both sides," he
said, partly blaming the media for inaccurate information. In the
Australian media, Indonesia is always portrayed as either politically
unstable or a country always racked with natural disasters. While in
the Indonesian media, Australia is often perceived as an arrogant
country that is always more than willing to interfere in Indonesian
domestic affairs."
"Like the East Timor issue, many here don't
understand that Australians once felt guilty as they left the East
Timorese alone when the island was invaded by the Japanese, so there is
an element of a historical background," Newton said during an interview
with The Jakarta Post at the International Center for Islam and
Pluralism (ICIP) office in South Jakarta, where he is volunteering as a
communications officer under a one-year government sanctioned
Australian Volunteers International (AVI) program.
"And when I was in high school, I did not even know where to locate Indonesia on the map!"
Born
on Feb. 26, 1983 to a Catholic family in Young, New South Wales, Newton
became interested in studying Islam when he was studying at a Catholic
high school. He chose to study Islam besides Catholicism as he thought
that the religions should share many similarities. He became more
curious after learning that Jesus, though portrayed as a prophet and
not God, is also mentioned in the Koran and that the Koran acknowledges
all prophets in Judaism and Christianity.
After completing
high school, he attended an open house by the University of New South
Wales (UNSW) where he enthusiastically listened to a presentation by
Prof. David Reeve, then the director of Chinese and Indonesian studies
at the university.
He chose to study Indonesian not only because
the language seemed to be less difficult than Chinese, but because it
was also in line with his growing interest in political Islam,
particularly given the fact that Indonesia has the largest number of
Muslims in the world. And, to be sure, the inescapable proximity of the
two countries highlights the significance of the subject.
So,
as part of a five-year undergraduate course at UNSW, he spent one
academic year in Indonesia under the Australian Consortium for
In-Country Indonesia Studies. He spent 11 months at the University of
Gadjah Mada, Yogyakarta, studying the language, exposing himself to the
local culture with all its subtleties and observing the dynamics of the
country's political Islam.
"It was a rewarding and
unforgettable experience - it has deeply enriched my life," Newton
recalled, staring at the ceiling for a while.
Well, indeed,
that is also where romance began: his first meeting with a Javanese
Muslim girl who has now become his girlfriend and who has been teaching
him a lot about Islam.
Back in Australia he wrote his thesis
on the emergence of the Justice and Welfare Party (PKS) in Indonesia's
political landscape. He said that he was fascinated by the fact that in
post-Soeharto Indonesia, religious parties wisely opted to channel
their aspirations through a democratic process.
"Some
Australian Indonesianists say that the PKS is a radical political
entity with a dangerous agenda, but I found that they are just
conservatives who do not always denote a negative image," he said,
adding that he has several good friends who are affiliated with the
Islamic political party, which is known for its concerted campaign for
good governance.
The rise of the PKS in separable from
societies' dissatisfaction with what they perceive as injustice and
corruption that are omnipresent, " he observed.
Newton
received the UNSW Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Honors
Scholarship Award in 2005 for his dedication to the chosen subject.
He
also befriended Indonesian Muslims from a wide spectrum of groups, from
those regarded as conservative to the more liberal ones. Nevertheless,
he said with regret that there seems to be a severe lack of productive
dialog between the two competing groups.
"Instead of engaging
in a dialog, there seems to be a phobia from each group with both
trading barren accusations. The liberal or the progressive accuses the
conservatives of being radical and intolerant, while the latter accuses
the former of being Western puppets."
"Still, my knowledge of
Islam and Indonesia is still limited," he said humbly, in fluent
Indonesian. He added that one of his aspirations is to help correct the
wrong perception of his fellow Australians over Indonesia as a Muslim
country.
"Indonesia is now arguably a democratic country, so
there is a golden opportunity for Indonesia and Australia to search for
more common ground," Newton said, adding that a lot can be done to
enhance relations between the two neighboring countries.
e
gave an example of tolerance and harmony that are actually rooted in
Indonesian diverse societies. And in Australia they have the concept of
giving people a "fair go" and a willingness to accept the plurality of
societies.
"More contacts between people of the two countries
can help to explore more similarities and understand the differences,
and cement stronger relations," said Newton, whose parents are
currently in the country to join Idul Fitri celebrations.
Newton,
who has been struggling to fast this Ramadhan, seems to be well on the
path to becoming a future prominent Indonesianist with an Indonesian
heart. |
