Accused Of Violating The Code Of Ethics Until Radical And Reported To KASN, Din Syamsuddin Is Defended

Din Syamsuddin (Photo: Instagram: @m_dinsyamsuddin)

JAKARTA - Former Muhammadiyah Chairman Din Syamsuddin was reported to the State Civil Service Commission (KASN) for allegedly violating the code of ethics related to the issue of radicalism. However, a number of figures defended Din and among them considered what he had done as a form of criticizing the government.

Alumni of the Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB) who are members of the Anti Radicalism Movement (GAR) reported Din Syamsuddin. Through a letter dated October 28, 2020, thousands of these alumni reported Din who was registered as a State Civil Apparatus (ASN) with a lectureship at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences (FISIP) Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University Jakarta.

In the report, Din was suspected of violating the code of ethics as a State Civil Apparatus (ASN) regarding a number of statements and actions from 2019 to 2020. There were a number of actions that allegedly corroborated this allegation.

First, Din was seen as being confrontational with state institutions and against their decisions. This event was recorded by GAR ITB on June 29, 2019.

Second, Din is considered to have discredited the government, stimulating resistance to the government at risk of the nation's disintegration process.

Third, he was accused of framing a misleading understanding of the general public and trying to injure the credibility of the legitimate government.

Fourth, Din's position as ASN who became the leader of a group that was opposed to the government. This happened when he became the declarator of the Coalition for Action to Save Indonesia (WE) on August 18, 2020.

It is known, this coalition has often criticized policies issued by the government of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi).

Fifth, Din is considered to have spread lies, slander, and agitated the public to move against the legitimate government. Finally, Din was accused of trying to exploit religious sentiment.

GAR-ITB then hopes that this report will get serious attention from KASN and give firm action against Din as ASN.

Responding to this report, a number of parties including figures in the government spoke up, including the Spokesperson for the Minister of Defense Prabowo Subianto, Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak. He said that the group called Din as radical had a hatred for Din Syamsuddin.

"If there are groups that accuse @m_dinsyamsuddin of being radical, they seem to be hallucinating and full of personal hatred for him," Dahnil was quoted as saying from his Twitter account @Dahnilanzar.

As a former chairman of PP Pemuda Muhammadiyah, he admits that he knows Din well. In addition, Dahnil also acknowledged that Din was often critical of the government, but this was a natural thing to remind people who were in the government.

"I know him well. Currently, he is critical, yes, because he is outside the government and it is fadhu kifayah to remind us who is in government," he said.

"So frankly, as a person who knows well with his actions as an interfaith community leader as well as a former leader of @Muhammadiyah, I can't stop thinking that there are parties who put the stamp of radicalism on Mr. Din. Even I believe that those who accuse him are not as moderate as Mr. Din," added Dahnil.

Not only Dahnil, other figures such as PP Muhammadiyah General Secretary Abdul Muti also spoke up about this reporting. He said this reporting was baseless and misdirected because he considered Din to be an active figure in promoting religious harmony.

"The accusation is clearly baseless and misplaced. I know Mr. Din closely as a person who is very active in encouraging religious moderation and internal and inter-religious harmony both at home and abroad," said Muti in a written statement.

In addition, he considered Din to be a prominent political Islamic professor and academically, Din was needed by the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences at UIN.

"If Mr. Din makes a lot of criticism, it is part of a call for faith, scholarship, and national responsibility. Criticism is a very natural thing in democracy and is needed in state administration. So, all parties should not be anti-constructive criticism," he said.

The government has emphasized that it will not carry out legal proceedings against Din Syamsuddin

Apart from these two figures, the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD also spoke up regarding this report and emphasized that the government would not carry out legal proceedings against Din Syamsuddin. He even said that the government had seen Din as a critical figure who had to be heard.

"The government still considers Mr. Din Syamsuddin a critical figure, whose criticisms we must hear. When will the government ever blame Mr. Din Syamsuddin's statement, let alone process it legally? Never and God willing, it will never be because we consider him a figure," said the former The Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court (MK) via video statement to journalists, Sunday, February 14.

Mahfud said Din was one of the figures who promoted religious moderation and had been a government envoy to discuss peaceful Islam abroad. For this reason, the government has no intention of questioning Din's role in statehood.

"As a person who is critical of the government, we are happy. Because the government is happy with critics. The government, God willing, will never catch critical people," he said.

"(Those, red) who are prosecuted by the law are people who will later be proven to have violated the law. Want to be critical but actually destructive. But if it's like Mr. Din Syamsuddin, where do we ever question it. I often discuss it with him, so there is no problem," he added.

Not only Mahfud, but Religious Affairs Minister Yaqut Cholil Qoumas also spoke up about this reporting. He asked all parties to not easily give a radical label to a certain person or group because it has the potential to cause harm.

"We have to be as objective as possible in looking at the issue, not to recklessly judge someone as radical, for example," he was quoted as saying in a written statement on the website of the Ministry of Religion.

This kind of stigma or negative stamp often arises because of communication blockages, so good two-way communication is needed. In addition, he also assessed that this arises because of the lack of information on the attitudes and behavior of a person or group so that clarification or tabayyun is necessary.

"I do not agree if someone is immediately said to be radical. Critical is different from radical. Politics can indeed be a violation of an ASN, but the matter of criticism is legitimate as conveyed by President Jokowi that criticism is not prohibited," he said.

So that in the future, Yaqut asked all parties to indirectly give a radical label to a person or group. "The issue of discipline, code of ethics, and code of conduct of ASN already has its realm. However, we shouldn't easily label Mr. Din as radical and so on," he concluded.