REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The general chairperson of the Muslimat NU, Khofifah Indar Parawansa, has called for a halt in the use of sensitive issues for campaigns to avoid damaging the harmonious relations that have been built so far.

"Do not sacrifice social harmony for the sake of the presidential election," she said here on Wednesday.

Muslimat NU is the women's wing of Nahdlatul Ulama, one of the largest Islamic organizations in Indonesia.

Khofifah noted that issues of religious, racial, ethnic and group differences, locally dubbed SARA, are very sensitive, and if they continue to be used, they could possibly create horizontal conflicts or even disintegration.

She explained, "Like it or not, people are still easily provoked by SARA issues."

Khofifah stated that moderate figures have so far worked very hard to preserve social harmony in the country's pluralistic society, and so, it would be regrettable if this was damaged just because of the presidential race.

SARA issues have spread widely in connection with the presidential election on July 9 through social media as well as the mass media, including the "Obor Rakyat" tabloid that has sought to undermine the integrity of presidential candidate Joko Widodo by falsely reporting that he is a non-Muslim and an ethnic Chinese.

Khofifah, who is one of the spokespersons for the Jokowi-Jusuf Kalla ticket, denied that she had made the statement to defend the Jokowi-JK pair she is supporting, in view of her position.

"This problem is our common concern. We certainly do not want to let the presidential election, which is supposed to become a stepping stone for preparing the future, damage what has already been well established," she said.

She pointed out that the damage to social harmony would be too costly for merely gaining power, and it would be hard for anyone later elected as president and vice president to make a recovery.

"So, the ends must not justify the means," the former minister of empowerment of women's roles under the late president Abdurrahman Wahid explained.

The Jokowi-Jusuf Kalla pair will compete against the Prabowo Subianto-Hatta Rajasa pair in the election on July 9.

Jokowi is currently Jakarta's governor, while Jusuf Kalla is a former vice president. Prabowo Subianto is a former military figure, and Hatta Rajasa is a former economic minister.

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