COMMENTARY: The elephant in the room in Saudi king’s visit
Ary Hermawan
The Jakarta Post
▻http://www.thejakartapost.com/academia/2017/03/12/commentary-the-elephant-in-the-room-in-saudi-kings-visit.html
Via @alaingresh
Foreign journalists may have overstated the influence of Saudi Salafism in Indonesia, but there is no denying Salafi movements are thriving in the country and this could pose a problem.
Radio stations spreading Salafi teachings are mushrooming in Indonesia, according to research by the Center for the Study of Islam and Society (PPIM). Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, has also decided to expand its Institute for Islamic and Arabic Studies (LIPIA), known as a leading Salafist educational institution in Jakarta.
To be clear, it is a mistake to equate Salafism with terrorism as many Salafists are apolitical, denouncing terrorists as takfiris who have strayed from the “true path of Islam.”
But Salafists, even the quietists, are generally absolutists who are ideologically incapable of managing differences, which could undermine Indonesia’s pluralism and democracy. It is also a fact that for some people, Salafism could serve as a bridge, instead of deterrent, to radicalism, with local militants supporting the Islamic State (IS) claiming to be Salafists.
Local IS ideologue Aman Abdurrahman, for example, is an alumni of LIPIA.
Scholars call Aman and other IS or al-Qaeda supporters Salafijihadists as they blend the apolitical but extreme ideology of Salafism with the political militancy of the Muslim Brotherhood, particularly the political theology of the group’s martyred ideologue, Sayid Qutb.
The Indonesian government, which supports the Islam Nusantara campaign and the rationale behind it, is aware of the elephant in the room and has understandably avoided mentioning the issue during this milestone event in Jakarta-Riyadh relations.