Word: wahid
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...would dispute that Wahid is genuinely committed to democracy and free and fair markets. And nobody accuses him of being personally corrupt. But, says Muhaimin Iskandar, head of the National Awakening Party, Wahid's faction in the parliament, "from the beginning, management has been his problem...
...strokes and diabetes have left Wahid with no vision, so he relies on a group of close aides and family members to brief him, read documents and even describe the body language of people he is meeting. Many fear this system is open to abuse. "His inner circle poses the greatest threat," says Zastrouw Ngatawi, a former assistant and author of a book about Wahid. "People are [invoking] his name, and this will distract from the ideas he is trying...
There is little to fault in those ideas. On a recent trip to Lombok, a tourist island whose hotels were emptied after an outbreak of Christian-Muslim violence in January, Wahid preached a gentle message of tolerance to both sides of the community. In a mosque, one man angrily asked why Wahid and his 30 million-member Nahdlatul Ulama Muslim organization has not done more to base the new government on Islam. Wahid calmly replied that he is not going to make Indonesia into an Islamic country because that was never the N.U.'s intention and other religions need...
...following evening Wahid turned the sights on himself. At a performance of traditional Indonesian wayang shadow puppets, he was asked by the puppeteer how becoming President has affected him. "I am afraid I am also a player in a larger story that I don't control," replied Wahid, suddenly serious. "I am a puppet that will be put back in the box when I am no longer needed...
...grandson of highly respected kyais--Muslim scholars--Wahid learned the Koran in traditional Muslim schools, or pesantren. Despite stints studying in Cairo and Baghdad--mostly spent reading Western literature and watching movies--Wahid has remained close to his roots. He relies on the N.U. organization for his political support and still meets regularly with a wide network of kyai friends...