PKB's decision to form a coalition with the Golkar Party in the coming presidential election may be a surprise. Wasn't Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), PKB's `natural mother', repressed by the New Order, born out of Golkar? Still, their ties have not been smooth.

NU, an Islamic social organization established in 1926, became a political party in 1952. In the 1955 General Election, it ranked third after the Indonesian National Party and Masyumi. With the ri