This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Late last spring I made my first ever trip to Indonesia, including the enchanting island of Bali. I came away deeply concerned that the country is a ticking time bomb.
Roughly 90 percent of Indonesia's 260 million people are Muslim, primarily Sunni, making it the world's largest Muslim country. Until recently, Indonesia's brand of Islam has been tolerant, inclusive and relaxed.
Native Indonesian mosques are lovely, pagoda-roofed structures scaled to their surrounding neighborhoods. However, as I wandered through various neighborhoods, I saw a great many massive Arabesque mosques being built.
I asked several people about all the new construction in an otherwise poor country. It turns out that Saudi Arabia has embarked on a major program to build mosques and other institutions promoting Saudi culture and the Saudi interpretation of Islam.
Here is an excerpt from the Atlantic Monthly (March 2, 2017):
" … Saudi Arabia has, for decades, been making investments of a different sort — those aimed at influencing Indonesian culture and religion.
"Since 1980, Saudi Arabia has devoted millions of dollars to exporting its strict brand of Islam, Salafism, to historically tolerant and diverse Indonesia. It has built more than 150 mosques (albeit in a country that has about 800,000), a huge free university in Jakarta, and several Arabic language institutes; supplied more than 100 boarding schools with books and teachers (albeit in a country estimated to have between 13,000 and 30,000 boarding schools); brought in preachers and teachers; and disbursed thousands of scholarships for graduate study in Saudi Arabia. All this adds up to a deep network of Saudi influence. ..."
This is very concerning as Saudi Arabia has been exporting a deeply conservative form of Islam known as Salafism (or Wahhabism). This is the same ideology that inspires ISIS and other radical groups that have gotten their start from Saudi teachings and money. Recall that Osama bin Laden was a Saudi, as were 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers. According to Wikipedia:
"In recent years, the Salafi methodology has come to be associated with the jihad of extremist groups that advocate the killing of innocent civilians. The European Parliament, in a report commissioned in 2013 claimed that Wahhabi and Salafi groups are involved, mainly via Saudi charities, in the support and supply of arms to rebel groups around the world."
The results of this are already plain to see in Indonesia. Unscrupulous politicians have taken advantage of radical Islamist movements to sweep into power, creating a situation where, as one Indonesian author lamented "radical Islamic groups are the new kingmakers of Indonesian politics."
And yet, with this plainly in the background, President Trump is cozying up to the Saudis. The United States cannot continue to maintain an unconditional friendship with Saudi Arabia. As a country, we must make it clear to the Saudis that our friendship is conditional. This is not a partisan issue.
A recent Senate resolution disapproving the arms sale to Saudi Arabia was sponsored by senators on both sides of the aisle. Last year a motion supported by senators ranging from Al Franken, D- Minn., to Utah's own Mike Lee to block a $1.15 billion arms sale to the Saudis received 27 votes.
I found Indonesia to be a tolerant, diverse and friendly country. If we sit idly by and allow the population to become radicalized, the results could be disastrous.
Nancy Huntsman, Park City, is a retired bank director who is managing the restoration of riparian land in Idaho's Teton Valley.