Derwin Pereira, Jakarta – A survey by the Washington-based Pew Research Centre last December revealed some startling facts about Muslim attitudes in Indonesia towards terrorism. It suggested some 25 per cent of 220 million Indonesians felt terrorism was a legitimate weapon in defending Islam.
The United States war on extremism following the September 11, 2001 attacks was greeted with scepticism and hostility especially by fringe radical groups that appeared to set the tone of national debate.
What a difference 18 months has made. The bombings in Bali last year and the latest strike in Jakarta have turned the Muslim ground against extremism. The October 12 attack on the two nightclubs in the tourist island resort was criticised heavily. But even then, the criticism was diluted by conspiracy theories that the bombings were a US-led plot to drag Indonesia into its fight against global terrorism.
The Marriott bombing on Tuesday revealed little of such discourse. The moderate Muslim majority appeared to speak with one voice. "Kill them, kill them" shouted one Indonesian who lost her son, calling for the bombers to be punished. Another declared that "they have no heart".
And Indonesia's top Muslim groups were also swift to condemn Tuesday's attacks, suggesting that the battle for the hearts and minds of Indonesian Muslims has turned against the radicals.
The Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and Muhammadiyah, which together comprise 60 million Muslims, issued a joint statement that underscored concerns that the attack had damaged the name of Islam and Indonesia. "The perpetrators have not become just the enemy of the security apparatus in Indonesia," NU chairman Hasyim Muzadi said. "They have become the enemy of all Indonesians because they have hurt our feelings."
Where questions were once being asked about the powers of security agencies to investigate radical groups, the Muhammadiyah is now urging them to step up intelligence action. A joint statement by him, and Muhammadiyah chief Syafii Ma'arif, noted: "A lot of the bombing incidents remain unsolved ... We demand that the government, particularly the police, improve their performance to counter terror."