Islamic Countries Can Press Japan to Pull Troops Out of Afghanistan

Tokyo- According to Muhammad Kustiawan, a researcher in Plus Line Inc. Tokyo and Center for Asian Studies Tokyo Kokushikan University, Japan is in a dilemmatic position in relation with Islamic countries regarding in its participation with the United States in Afghanistan. It can be seen when LDP, in this case Fukuda as the Prime Minister of Japan and his cabinet argues to prolong the Japanese Defense Force participation in Afghanistan and support the American program to fight terrorism after a debate in Japanese Parliament discussing the act last week.
"I ask to many Japanese politician. Currently most Japanese politician is close to modern Islamic countries groups like Indonesia, Malaysia, and India" stated Muhammad Kustiawan, chairperson of The Japan Muhammadiyah Special Branch Board, to muhammadiyah.or.id Sunday (21/10/2007) night. Fukuda took this policy because the United States pressed Japan to prolong the Defense Force Afghanistan Participation Act one day before the controversy.
There are many foreign students and workers coming from Islamic countries like Indonesia, India, Pakistan, and Malaysia accepted and currently residing in Japan. The Japanese Islamic communities are growing there. This makes the US worried and pressed Fukuda.
Kustiawan analyzed that Japan can switch to become America's great opponent if Muslims in Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Iran, and Pakistan unite to ask Japan to lead the third modern countries.
Furthermore, Kustiawan states that Indonesia as a the world's largest modern Muslim country Indonesia must take a strategic role to support the fight against terrorist as long as it does not consider Islam as a terrorist religion and to show that Islam is a peaceful and humane religion.
"I think that Indonesian Muslim role is strategic in the future if we can mobilize the power of modern Muslims like Muslims in India, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Iran," he said. "Currently, Japanese leaders are consider Islam as an important power for Japan against America," he said. (Arif)
Interpreter : Dranantya I. Wirawan
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