Pope Francis Visits Indonesia, Muhammadiyah And Persis Calls For Permanent Solutions To The Future Of Palestine

Photo: Pope Francis arrives at Soekarno-Hatta Airport Tuesday (3/9) for a visit to Indonesia. (Photo: INDONESIA PAPAL VISIT COMMITTEE)

The momentum of Pope Francis' visit to Indonesia, Singapore and Timor Leste was made by two Indonesian Islamic organizations to voice permanent solutions for the Palestinian people who are still experiencing Israeli occupation. Muhammadiyah and Persis are united in calling for the independence of the Palestinian state to become a discussion that should not be forgotten.

The Secretary General of PP Muhammadiyah, Abdul Mu'ti, welcomed the arrival of Pope Francis. "Indonesia is important to make the arrival and meeting with Pope Francis a momentum to take initiatives and develop a more proactive role of world peace in finding permanent solutions for the future of Palestine by involving various parties at the world level," he said in an official statement received by VOI on Tuesday, September 3.

A similar statement was made by the Central Executive of Islamic Unity (PP Persis). General Chairperson of PP Persis, Al-Ustadz Jeje Zaenudin, expressed his hope that this visit would be an important momentum to call for recognition of Palestinian independence and sovereignty.

"We hope that the Pope's visit to Indonesia and several other countries can be an event to call for recognition of the independence and sovereignty of the Palestinian State, as well as invite the world community to jointly stop Israel's crimes against the Palestinian people," said Ustadz Jeje.

Pope Francis is known for his strong messages about interfaith harmony, inter-religious tolerance, and his resistance to Islamophobia. In this context, Ustadz Jeje stressed that the Pope's messages calling for recognition of Palestinian independence and the end of the atrocities of Israeli war would be very meaningful for Muslims in Indonesia and the world.

Not only for Palestinian issues, Ustadz Jeje also hopes Pope Francis calls for a peace message to other parts of the world that is still being hit by conflict. "We also hope that the Pope can bring news that provides hope and a message of peace to a world that is being hit by tensions and wars, as happened between Ukraine and Russia," he continued.