ASIA/INDONESIA - Catholic journalists: ethics and conscience are crucial when it comes to voting

Friday, 15 February 2019 mass media social communications journalism peace islam dialogue

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Jakarta (Agenzia Fides) - Amidst rampant practices for the dissemination of hoaxes and false news, before the presidential elections next April, "logic, attention and conscience are really important": said Shinta Nuriyah Wahid, a Muslim intellectual, to Catholic journalists in a recent meeting in which she recalled President Abdurrahman Wahid called "Gus Dur", her husband. Invited by Catholic communicators, the former Indonesian first lady noted that "Gus Dur sacrificed everything in order to protect Indonesia and its national interests". The fourth president of Indonesia, Abdurrahman Wahid or Gus Dur, was in power from 1999 to 2001. He was a member of the nation's largest moderate Muslim organization: Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), which has about 80 million members. Iconic figure of the interconfessional hero, protector of minorities, Christians remember him for his commitment to promoting peaceful relations between religious and ethnic groups, and as a defender of the "Pancasila" (the charter of the five principles) and the Indonesian pluralist society, against all sectarianism and religious fundamentalism.
Shinta Nuriyah Wahid, invited to attend the meeting of "Paguyuban Wartawan Katolik Indonesia", an association of Catholic journalists, held in Jakarta, addressing the assembly said: "What I did with my late husband Gus Dur, for the good of the nation and to protect Pancasila, is a sincere commitment based on conscience". From here comes the commitment to social and religious tolerance that "is the duty of every religion", she remarked. In view of the upcoming elections, during the election campaign, she pointed out: "Your professional vocation is to promote honesty and truth. You are always strictly devoted to the logic and moral conscience. Therefore, among the fake news that will circulate, ethics and deontology will be really important". (MH) (Agenzia Fides, 15/2/2019)