Launch of Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s (ASPI’s) Policy Report on radical Islam and terrorism in Indonesia
The Australian Strategic Policy Institute today released its report Local Jihad: Radical Islam and terrorism in Indonesia.
The report is authored by Dr Greg Fealy, research fellow and lecturer in Indonesian politics at the Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies and the Faculty of Asian Studies at the Australian National University (ANU) and Aldo Borgu, Program Director Operations and Capability.
‘The events of the past six years have prompted a dramatic reassessment of Indonesian Islam. What was once widely seen as one of the most tolerant and benign expressions of Islam in the Muslim world has recently come to be regarded as having more malign qualities. Recent violent radicalism in Indonesia is seen by many as a relatively recent phenomenon. But a closer look at modern Indonesian history reveals the inaccuracy of this view.’ Dr Fealy says.
‘The September 2004 bombing of the Australian Embassy in Jakarta demonstrated that Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) is still a force to be reckoned with. However, given that the blast came more than a year after JI’s last major operation, it raises questions about the organisation’s capabilities, strategic objectives and tactics. Answering these questions becomes more important in determining what our policy choices should be.’ Aldo Borgu states.
Terrorism might be a global issue but for Australia the threat is inexplicably tied up with the problems of the future stability of our neighbours, particularly Indonesia. This ASPI report reveals that while groups like JI might have global links, their motivations, recruiting and operations are inextricably caught up in regional issues. So in addition to our global efforts we also require a regional strategy tailored to regional solutions.
The report makes a number of recommendations as to what such a regional strategy might involve including ongoing measurements of Indonesian public attitudes towards Australia; development of a public diplomacy strategy; improving our knowledge base on the terrorists themselves; widening our capacity building efforts with Indonesian agencies; expanding maritime cooperation and improving the coordination of intelligence and exchange of information within Indonesia.