Mike Hardy: Bridging Islam, West by exchange

A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Economics professor and outgoing director of the British Council, Mike Hardy, last week left Indonesia after four years in the country.

In an interview with The Jakarta Post during his last days here, he talked about the memories he'd be taking home to London, as well as the importance of exchange and dialog he'd seen during his time at the Council.

The Council conducted an exchange program between Muslim leaders of Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah and British Muslim leaders and scholars, he said.

"We brought Muslim leaders to the UK. They were surprised to find that Islam was developed and free. It ran counter to their earlier perceptions," Hardy said.

The Council also invited British youths to come to Indonesia to meet Muslim students in Islamic boarding schools across the country.

Hardy said the British participants found Islam here a moderate religion, tolerant of followers of other faiths.

"There is a misperception about Islam here by people in Western countries. Likewise, people here also have similar misperceptions about the West," he said.

Hardy believed dialog was the key to fighting extremism, saying security measures taken against people who were considered radicals would not end the extreme ideologies.

When he was asked about a possible relationship between poverty and extremist terrorist acts, he said, "Poor people don't make bombs".

He said radicalism was caused by extreme ideologies more than a society's economic condition.

He said the involvement of youths in the dialogs since the very beginning was necessary to tackle extremism and change misperceptions.

Asked to comment on reports that Islam in Indonesia is growing increasingly intolerant, Hardy said he disagreed, saying the disputes were caused by the different interpretations of the main teachings of Islam.

"I'm not an expert in the area. But I think, in general, Islam here is more tolerant than in many other countries," he said.

He said many people in Western countries had the wrong idea of the security condition here.

"My daughter came here last year and she was not afraid to go everywhere. Many still think about bomb threats, but it's safe here," he said.

He said some alleged terrorists were still at large, but also that the Indonesian government seemed to be working to improve security.

Hardy said he was more worried about the widening gap between the rich and poor in the country.

"If you fly over Sumatra, you will see huge palm oil plantations there. But you will also see many indigenous people living in poverty. I think it should be given more attention," he said.

According to the latest government data, about 30 million of 220 million Indonesians still live in poverty. The World Bank suggests twice that many.

Hardy said the current government was on the right track to eradicate poverty by developing a healthy economy, bravely reducing a fuel subsidy and fighting terrorism.

Hardy said Yogyakarta and Malang in East Java were two cities he liked the most during his stay, the former for its rich culture and the latter for Muhammadiyah University.

"Besides the campus, I like Malang because it's not a big city and the air is fresh," he said.

All in all, Hardy left Indonesia with a suitcase of memories of the country and the people. He summed it all up with one convincing statement: "I'm happy here".