TEMPO.CO, Depok - It is estimated that over 100 Indonesians has went for jihad with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in ISIS-dominated regions. However, the government’s official record shows only 53 people.
According to Sidney Jones, the director of Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), those jihadists will pose a serious threat to Indonesia when they return. The threat is even bigger than the threat posed by former Afghan jihadists. “They will bring new ideology. This is very dangerous,” said Jones.
Jones asked the new Indonesian government under president-elect Joko Widodo to pay full attention to this problem, such as what to do when they return to Indonesia in the next two years. “This is homework for the new government.”
Jones said the jihadists could spread their ideology in Indonesia. She added it would be better if every suicide bombing only killed the suicide bomber because if suicide bombers reach their target, the casualties will be dreadful.
Jones also criticized the weak Indonesia’s immigration, saying that all suspicious people should have all their data collected so that they could be banned from leaving and entering the country. “Data collection in Indonesia right now is not very strong because extremists can go in and out.”
Jones said the government must also approach former jihadists who had returned to the country to avert calamities. She added their radical views must be reduced gradually through a holistic approach. “The approach can be done through their families.”
ILHAM TIRTA