ABSTRACT
The revival of interest in Islam has been accompanied by Muslim demands for a stronger political voice, a trend which has broad implications for Indonesia. The debate on Islam's role in society poses a real dilemma for Indonesian proponents of democratisation. The most meaningful development for Islam in Indonesia, and certainly the most controversial, is Soeharto's strong sponsorship of the Indonesian Association of Muslim Intellectuals (ICMI). The head of the non-governmental organisation Paramadina, he shares with establishment ICMI figures like Habibie and Emil Salim a desire to focus Islamic energies on the socio-economic transformation of Indonesian Muslims. History may show that ICMI neo-modernists like Sucipto were right in thinking that ICMI would act as a restraining influence on the modernists and that the main body of the Islamic leaders was committed to the Pancasila notion of freedom of the religion.
