The use of JI’s Islamic school network to recruit new members and maintain the loyalty of existing ones is still ongoing. [...] The arrests also confirmed that by adopting the new doctrine of ‘Tamkin’ ─ an Arabic word to mean ‘preparing the community to support JI’s political cause’ ─ JI is now moving into mainstream politics such as establishing a political party called PDRI, Partai Dakwah Rakyat Indonesia (Da’wa Party of the People of Indonesia). [...] To name a few, JI encourages its members to join public rallies, the prominent one being the “212 movements” which seek to pressure the government to implement aspects of Islamic law, such as the blasphemy law used against Jakarta’s former Christian governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (‘Ahok’) over a speech. [...] For example, the narrative of “defending the oppressed ummah” in global and regional conflicts such as the ones in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Southern Philippines, Myanmar and Xinjiang has proven to be a powerful tool. [...] Violent jihad is a secondary type and relates to self-defence against the enemy of Islam.” To complement the above programme, Indonesia needs to expand its counter- extremism narrative to include strengthening national identity as a response to the rising tide of religious exclusivism, as seen in the discrimination against religious minorities and attacks on their places of worship.
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- Singapore
