TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Wiranto was reluctant to comment on the news about Pesantren (Islamic School) Ibnu Mas'ud. According to reports, the teachers and students are linked with the Syrian Islamic State of Iraq (ISIS) militant group, and some have gone there to join their fight.
Wiranto said on Friday that he had repeatedly stated his stance on terrorism, and declined to make further comments.
Wiranto said that terrorism is a non-traditional threat faced by many countries including Indonesia. Meanwhile, Indonesia's law on terrorism a.k.a. Law No.15/2003, Wiranto said, is no longer relevant to the present situation and needs to be revised.
Read: Islamic School in Bogor Linked to ISIS
The minister said that prevailing Law cannot prevent the terrorism, whilst there are cases where authorities have enough evidence to interrogate someone suspected to have the potential to act out terrorism.
It has been reported that a number of teachers and students of Ibnu Mas'ud, a pesantren in Sukajaya Village at Mount Salak, Bogor, flew to Syria in order to fight for and become martyrs for ISIS.
Ibnu Mas'ud was founded in 2007 in Depok by Aman Abdurrahman, a jailed cleric. People in the neighborhood have long been suspicious about activities at the Islamic boarding school.
The school's spokesman Jumadi, denied the school supported ISIS or other militant Islamist groups. He also denied that the school taught extreme and violent interpretation of Islam.
ADITYA BUDIMAN | YOHANES PASKALIS
