Jakarta/Brussels, 8 August 2002: Indonesia is not a terrorist hotbed. In the world’s largest
Muslim country, proponents of radical Islam remain a small minority, and most
of these are devout practitioners who would never dream of using violence. Only
one network of militant Muslims has produced all the Indonesian nationals so
far suspected of links to al-Qaeda. However even a tiny group of people can
cause an immense amount of damage. In a new briefing published today,
Al-Qaeda in Southeast Asia: The case of the “Ngruki Network”
in Indonesia, the
International Crisis Group analyses the “Ngruki network”, named after the
village in Central Java where a religious boarding school at the hub of the
network is located.
The briefing explains how the network emerged, its historical
antecedents and the political dynamics that led some of its members from
Indonesia to Malaysia to Afghanistan. ICG also warns that current international
pressure on Indonesia to carry out preventive arrests of suspects without hard
evidence could be seriously counterproductive.
The Ngruki network has its roots in the late 1970s when
Indonesian intelligence operatives embarked on an operation to expose potential
enemies of then President Soeharto from the Muslim right. In the 1980s Ngruki
drew in additional members, many of whom had served time in prison for anti-government
activities. Its goal is to establish a state based on Islamic law, but it was
radicalised by the Soeharto government’s policies. In the 1990s many leading
figures fled to Malaysia – which at the time was a meeting place for Muslim
guerrillas of all kinds.
ICG Indonesia Program Director Sidney Jones said: “The
problem is that the Ngruki network is far wider than the handful of people who
have been accused of ties to al-Qaeda and includes individuals with
well-established political legitimacy for having defied the Soeharto
government. Repression gave birth to the network and carrying out arrests
without sufficient evidence could produce anew generation of radicals”.
The challenge both for the Indonesian government and the
international community is to be alert to the possibility of individuals making
common cause with international criminals without taking steps that will
undermine Indonesia’s fragile democratic institutions.
Sidney Jones said: “Indonesia has a highly politicised
national intelligence agency and law enforcement institutions. Its courts are
weak and corrupt. International pressure could lead once again to the arbitrary
arrests and detentions that characterised the Soeharto years – and that could
turn its targets into heroes who receive substantial political and financial
support”.
MEDIA CONTACTS
Katy Cronin (London) +44.20.86.82.93.51 –
email: [email protected]
Ana Caprile (Brussels) +32-(0)2-536.00.70 – Jennifer Leonard (Washington) +1-202-408 8012
All ICG reports are available on our website www.crisisweb.org
