By
Marta Petrosillo
“This attack should serve as an alarm bell
for all Indonesians, and above all for Muslims. They need to recognize the
danger of terrorism,” said a Jesuit based in the world’s largest Muslim
country.
Father Franz Magnis-Suseno, a Jesuit and
lecturer in philosophy at the University of Jakarta spoke with international
Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) about the terrorist attack
Jan. 14, 2016 in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, which left seven people
dead, including five of the attackers. ISIS claimed responsibility for the
attack.
The Jesuit said the violence had nothing to
do with tensions between Christians and Muslims in the country, which has been
long known for its moderate and tolerant form of Islam. The priest speculated
that the target of the violence were not Christians or other religious
minorities, and that the attack were meant to send a message to the West, just
like recent ISIS-inspired or sponsored terror operations in Istanbul and Egypt.
However, research by ACN has confirmed that
Indonesia’s tradition of religious pluralism and harmony is increasingly coming
under threat; there has been a significant rise in religious intolerance,
driven by radical Islamism. Attacks against churches are on the rise, as
demonstrated by the recent violence in the province of Aceh; a growing number
of churches are being forced to close.
Other religious communities, such as the
Ahmadiyya and Shia sects within Islam, as well as Buddhists, Hindus, adherents
of indigenous traditional religions and progressive Sunni Muslims—who speak out
against intolerance—are also facing increasing harassment and violence.
Acts of violence are perpetrated by radical
Islamist organizations such as the Front Pembela Islam (FPI) or “Islamic
Defenders Front,” which routinely carry out attacks on churches, Ahmadi
mosques, and Shia communities with impunity. Islamist propaganda is gaining ground
on university campuses and in mosques and pesantren,
Islamic boarding schools.
Islamist ideas are largely imported from
the Middle East, particularly through funding for scholarships allowing
students to takes courses in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, and financial support for
the publishing and distribution of Islamist literature.
“The authorities are confident of being
able to depend on a strong anti-terrorist strategy, which has been in operation
since 1988,” Father Magnis-Suseno said, adding that he nonetheless is concerned
about the presence of numerous terrorist groups in the country.
“In reality these groups are very much
divided among themselves and cannot be lumped together or form a common front.
The majority of these groups condemn ISIS, but two groups in particular
indirectly support the idea of the caliphate: the Jemaah Islamiah and the East Indonesia Mujahidin (MIT).”
Father Magnis-Suseno does not think the
growth in the number of supporters of Islamic State poses an immediate danger
to Indonesia, but much will depend upon the political and economic development
of the country, he stressed.
“If the government succeeds, as it seems to
be doing, in offering real prospects of a better future and reining in the
rampant corruption, then young Indonesians will not go looking for alternatives
such as ISIS,” the Jesuit said.
Father
Magnis-Suseno (© ACN)
Editor’s Notes:
Directly under the
Holy Father, Aid to the Church in Need supports
the faithful wherever they are persecuted, oppressed or in pastoral need.
ACN is a Catholic charity - helping to bring Christ to the world through
prayer, information and action.
Founded in 1947 by Father Werenfried van Straaten, whom Pope John Paul
II named “An Outstanding Apostle of Charity,” the organization is now at work
in over 145 countries throughout the world.
The charity undertakes thousands of projects every year including
providing transport for clergy and lay Church workers, construction of church
buildings, funding for priests and nuns and help to train seminarians. Since
the initiative’s launch in 1979, 43 million Aid to the Church in Need Child’s Bibles have been distributed
worldwide.
