TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) disagrees to the accusations that the government has neglected the Shia community in Sampang, Madura. Head of the Inter Religion Harmony Affair Slamet Effendy Yusuf said that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has declared that the Ramadan month is the right moment for reconciliation between Sunni and Syiah clerics in Madura.
"That effort is what needs to be strengthened," said Slamet Effendi at the MUI building in Jakarta, Tuesday, July 30, 2013. Even so, he claimed that MUI still hopes for the President to directly meet and have a dialogue with Madura clerics and Shia community figures in Sampang. "In that dialogue, the President should become the arbitrator for his people."
Presidential Advisor on Human Rights Albert Hasibuan has personally come to the Shia refugee camp at a modest flat in Pasar Induk Puspa Agro complex, Jemundo Village, Sidoarjo, Monday, July 22, 2013. "I have been ordered by President SBY to directly check the condition," Albert said Tempo.
Albert said that his visit to Jemundo was to ensure that Shia refugees have received their basic needs and the children their educational needs from the East Java provincial government.
PRIHANDOKO
