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| Southeast Asia |
| Bashir's school to hold seminar on terrorism |
| 2006-01-21 |
| An Islamic boarding school in Indonesia, accused of being a 'school for terrorists' has gone on the offensive, by inviting ambassadors, academics and religious leaders to a seminar this weekend entitled "Jihad and Terrorism" during which some former pupils will defend the school's reputation. The Al-Mukmin Ngruki pesantren, in Solo, Central Java, was co-founded by Abu Bakar Bashir, considered the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiyah, the terrorist formation that wants to create an Islamic state or caliphate in South East Asia. “Anyone who defines Ngruki as an indoctrination centre for future terrorists has a superficial vision of the problem" said one of the seminar's speakers, Anab Afifi, a former pupil and now university lecturer in Jakarta. Terrorism experts consider Ngruki a 'school for terrorists' and a problem that must be resolved in the struggle against Islamic extremism. Their reasoning is simple. It is widely known that most of the teachers in the school endorse the idea of an Islamic state in Indonesia and some do not recognise the authority of the civilian government in Jakarta. Some 30 terror suspects who have been arrested or who died in bomb attacks in the country in recent years studied at Ngruki. Anab, who will present a paper entitled "Ngruki in the middle of Global Terrorism Issues", argues that branding it a terrorist breeding ground is mistaken and indicates a limited vision of the problem. His reasoning is equally simple. "Most of Ngruki alumni involved in bombings left the school 10 years before their activities. If Ngruki really was a breeding ground of terrorists it would not take that long, it will take only one or two years after it founded in 1974" Anab argued. "They lived, experienced and studied outside Ngruki for a long time before they conducted the bombings" added Anan, who now runs a communication consultancy and teaches at the Mercubana university in the capital. According to Anab the most important factor in converting former pupils in Indonesia and elsewhere was Hambali, the operational chief of Jemmah Islamiyah, arrested in Thailand in August 2003 and currently believed to be in an American secret detention centre, probably in Jordan. "Hambali was the main actor in the making of most Indonesian students convicted of terrorism offences. The series of bombing in the Philippines and Indonesia were clearly managed by him since he was also a very capable merchant of the ideas of Osama (bin Laden)." Anab makes the point that for the thirty students who embraced a terrorist vocation, thousands more who studied there have perfectly normal lives. “Around 1,800 students attend Ngruki each year and from its foundations some 15,000 youngsters have attended the pesantren" he noted. He says the school finances itself mainly from the 300,000 ruppiah (30 Euro) monthly fee paid by the students rather than with donations from fundamentalist sources. He points out that the Ngruki curriculum is based on the directives of the government and those of Islamic colleges and that in 2003, a delegation from the religious affairs ministry surveyed Ngruki and did not find evidence of radical teachings. However, recent research by the Jakarta-based International Center for Islam and Pluralism (ICIP) in 20 Muslim schools in West Java showed that terrorism allegations apart, students and clerics firmly believe there is no compromising on religion and tolerance should be limited to sociopolitical and economic issues. "Their unbending view of religious right and wrong means no uttering of a Merry Christmas greeting to Christians, or any other expression of acceptance toward a faith other than Islam" reported the Jakarta Post. In terms of implementing sharia law, the Jakarta Post reports, the responses were split, with some advocating the establishment of an Islamic state, while others thought creating strong morality and education were more important. Although they deny the claims they are a breeding ground for terrorists, pesantren are fertile ground for conservative, intolerant views of other faiths, the study reveals. A whole team of religious leaders, hired by the Jakarta government for its Task Force against Terrorism, immediately after the suicide bomb attacks in Bali last October, has said there should be more direct control over what is taught in the various Islamic schools across the archipelago, including Ngruki. Anab studied at Ngruki for six years before embarking on a computing degree at the Pembangunan National University in the capital. Today he recalls with pleasure his education at Ngruki, though he has no formal ties with the school. "Ngruki teaches the Jihad values, but not as a means of legitimating terror or the fighting non-combatant targets. Jihad is defined as leading our life in providing religious services whatever our role in society" he said. "Every one of us is Jihadist, when we serve our life for better things based on true faith (aqida)" he added. Around 1,000 former pupils are expected to attend this weekend's seminar, including some coming from abroad. Ambassadors have also been invited but few have confirmed their presence. Interior minister Muhammad Maruf will open the event and one of the keynote speakers will be Maruf Amin, the head of the fatwa section of the Indonesian Ulemas Council. The council last year issued a non-binding fatwa against terrorism. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #2 Sounds like a "how-to" seminar. |
| Posted by: Spoper Phetch6565 2006-01-21 11:40 |
| #1 "The council last year issued a non-binding fatwa against terrorism." The fatwas FOR terrorism are binding. |
| Posted by: Hupomoger Clans9827 2006-01-21 10:42 |