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Title: Obama visits Jakarta mosque as part of Muslim outreach (the right path)
Source:
USA TODAY
URL Source: http://content.usatoday.com/communi ... ia-including-visit-to-mosque/1
Published: Nov 9, 2010
Author: JIM WATSON
Post Date: 2010-11-09 22:25:48 by Hondo68
Keywords: his Muslim project, the right path, incomplete project
Views: 3321
Comments: 2
President Obama said tonight that the Istiqlal mosque is a tribute to both the faith of Islam and cooperation between religions. After his tour of the Jakarta landmark, Obama said to reporters that the grand imam told him that a Catholic church is next door, and the mosque lets parishioners use its parking lot during Christmas time. "That's an example of the kind of cooperation" between religions in Jakarta, Obama said. Given the fact that Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim majority nation, President Obama is also using his current visit to promote what he calls his "incomplete project" of improving relations between the U.S. and the Muslim world. That effort include a major speech later tonight at the University of Indonesia. Earlier today, Obama discussed his Muslim project, designed to ease tensions that grew after 9/11 and the war in Iraq: With respect to outreach to the Muslim world, I think that our efforts have been earnest, sustained. We don't expect that we are going to completely eliminate some of the misunderstandings and mistrust that have developed over a long period of time. But we do think that we're on the right path. So whether it's our more active communications to press in Muslim countries, or exchange programs in which we're having U.S. scientists and other educators visit Muslim countries, or that entrepreneurship summit that we had in Washington in which we invited young business leaders from Muslim countries all across -- all around the world -- what we're trying to do is to make sure that we are building bridges and expanding our interactions with Muslim countries so that they're not solely focused on security issues. Because you come to a place like Indonesia, which is the largest Muslim population in the world, but people here have a lot of other interests, other than security -- that security is important, but I want to make sure that we are interacting with a wide range of people on a wide range of issues. And I think by broadening the relationship, it strengthens it, it builds trust, creates more people-to-people contact. That will be good for our security but it will also be good for the larger cause of understanding between the United States and the Muslim world. So I think it's an incomplete project. We've got a lot more work to do. And it's not going to eliminate some -- or replace some tough dialogue around concrete policy issues. Those are going to continue. There are going to be some policy differences that we can't avoid. But I do think it's helping. 
President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama on tour of Istiqlal mosque in Jakarta.
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#1. To: hondo68 (#0)
It's also the third biggest Republic behind the U.S. and India. It must pain those who argue that Islam = Sharia to see a country such as Indonesia that is largely Islamic but that features a free and open political system.
#2. To: go65 (#1)
The provinces of Aceh, Jakarta, Yogyakarta, and West Papua have greater legislative privileges and a higher degree of autonomy from the central government than the other provinces. The Acehnese government, for example, has the right to create an independent legal system; in 2003, it instituted a form of Sharia (Islamic law).
Top • Page Up • Full Thread • Page Down • Bottom/LatestGiven the fact that Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim majority nation, President Obama is also using his current visit to promote what he calls his "incomplete project" of improving relations between the U.S. and the Muslim world.
Replies to Comment # 1. Islam = Sharia
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