Jemaah Islamiyah: reduced sentences for those who collaborate in the dissolution
The proposal put forward by the Indonesian counter-terrorism agency in the process of deradicalising the Islamist formation in South-East Asia. Two leading figures from prison are contributing to the process from their cells, while in a ceremony several thousand former militiamen swore allegiance to the state. Islamic colleges affiliated with the group have also promised to remove extremist content from their curricula.
Jakarta (AsiaNews/Agencies)- Indonesia's National Counter Terrorism Agency (BNPT) has proposed reducing prison sentences for former members of Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) who support the group's disbandment. The aim is to encourage further accessions to the process of reintegration into society.
The head of the BNPT, Commissioner General Eddy Hartono, said the agency would recommend to the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections that sentences for more than 180 detainees be reduced, although no exact timeline was given.
These include the names of Abu Rusdan and Para Wijayanto, former JI leaders, who are actively cooperating with the authorities through video conferencing from their cells, thanks to the support of Detachment 88 (Densus 88), the Indonesian police's counter-terrorism squad.
Eddy Hartono added that Abu Rusdan and Para Wijayanto will receive special attention for their access to parole, which is provided by Indonesian law for prisoners who have served at least two-thirds of their sentence.
The statements were made on 21 December during an event in Surakarta where more than 1,200 former JI members attended in attendance and another 6,800 online. During the meeting, they swore allegiance to the State of the Republic of Indonesia, pledging to abandon extremist ideologies and respect national laws.
‘We, former members of Jemaah Islamiyah and jihadis in Afghanistan and the Philippines from Greater Surakarta, Kedu and Semarang, declare our support for the dissolution of JI,’ said a spokesperson on behalf of the group.
The event was organised by Densus 88, which on the same day announced the handing over of weapons and explosives by other former members: six firearms, 40 kg of explosives and 12 bomb detonators. Commissioner General Eddy Hartono praised the gesture as a ‘concrete sign of commitment’ and urged the former militants to become model citizens, promoting religious tolerance.
The Al-Qaeda affiliated Jemaah Islamiyah is known to be responsible for a series of terrorist attacks in Indonesia, including the 2002 Bali massacres. Founded in 1993, it aimed to establish an Islamic state in Southeast Asia.
The dissolution process of the JI also involved structural changes in the pesantren (Islamic colleges) affiliated with the group, which opened their doors to the control of the Ministry of Religious Affairs. JI senior leaders have promised to remove extremist content from school curricula, ensuring that education is in line with traditional Islamic values.
According to Imtihan Syafi'i, a former JI member and headmaster of a pesantren, the change is a gradual process: ‘We will no longer promote extremism. We will reduce this to zero, but it will take time,' he told Straits Times, emphasising that pesantren will no longer use teaching materials that can induce radical ideologies.
The head of Densus 88, Sentot Prasetyo, also emphasised the importance of turning former members of the terrorist group into promoters of peace and tolerance.
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