Sastro Al Ngatawi urges NU to expand its global role from Jombang
He said global conflicts and rapid technology are widening the space to spread the idea of Islam Nusantara abroad.
Former spokesman for President KH Abdurrahman Wahid, Sastro Al Ngatawi, said Nahdlatul Ulama needs to strengthen its international role amid conflicts around the world. On the sidelines of the 35th NU Congress in Jombang, East Java, he said the internationalization of Islam Nusantara has been part of NU's struggle from the start. Sastro pointed to the formation of the Hijaz Committee, initiated by KH Hasyim Asy'ari and KH Abdul Wahab Hasbullah, as one milestone. He said NU's focus had at times turned more inward, then strengthened again in the Gus Dur era. He said advances in information technology and increasingly blurred national borders make the opportunity even greater, while opening a path for NU to offer an image of Islam that is not solely Middle Eastern in character and to widen benefits at the global level.