Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) is a historic organisation that has made significant contributions to Indonesia, citing the song “Syubbanul Wathon” as one example of its spirit on patriotism and nationalism.
“Nahdlatul Ulama is a historic institution that has made enormous contributions to the struggle for the independence of the Republic of Indonesia. Clear evidence of this is the song Syubbanul Wathon,” Prabowo said in his speech at the opening of the 35th NU Congress in Jombang District, East Java, on Thursday.
Prabowo said the song, created by K.H. Abdul Wahab Chasbullah, is a patriotic and nationalist song composed by religious leaders with a strong spirit of love for the homeland.
The song was created more than a decade before the Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, he added, when the form and name of the country that would eventually be established had yet to be clearly defined.
“Religious leaders had the courage to create a song that was so patriotic and nationalist. This song already existed more than a decade before the proclamation of independence,” Prabowo said.
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The song’s lyrics reflect the aspirations of NU’s founders for the Indonesian people to rise and stand on equal footing with other nations in the world.
“Rising means becoming a dignified nation. A dignified nation is just and prosperous. No nation can be respected if it is not prosperous and there can be no prosperity without justice,” he said.
The President also expressed his pride in NU and congratulated the organisation on holding its congress.
Prabowo officially opened the 35th NU Congress at Jombang, accompanied by Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Speaker of the People’s Consultative Assembly Ahmad Muzani, Chair of the 35th NU Congress Organising Committee Saifullah Yusuf, Chairman of the NU Executive Board Yahya Cholil Staquf, Rais Aam of NU K.H. Miftachul Akhyar, and leader of Bahrul Ulum Islamic Boarding School K.H. M. Hasib Wahab Hasbullah.
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Translator: Bayu Prasetyo
Editor: Fransiska Ninditya
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