Vaudine England – Reza Pahlevi's shiny namecard describes him as the head of Laskar, or the Front to Defend Islam (FPI). That means he is mentor to and organiser of thousands of young Muslim men who, fired by a militant vision of Islam, have in recent months shown an increasing readiness to demonstrate, pressure and even attack enemies of the faith.
That translates into raiding bars, brothels, restaurants and other venues regarded as sinful – most recently marching on Parliament last Wednesday demanding that a new code of morality be drafted.
Mr Reza has been with the group for only two years. "I joined because it is independent, it is non-partisan," he said, as several hundred white and turquoise-clad followers moved into formation behind him on the streets of Jakarta. They shouted slogans against Zionism, Communism, certain Christian generals and more.
"We are here to uphold morality and the values of Islam. And we uphold Eastern culture in general, which has always been more pure than others," he says with conviction.
An anti-Western bias is to be expected, but what worries diplomats and many Indonesians is the seeming impunity with which groups of FPI youths have been able to pursue their agenda without sanction from the law. Despite laws against carrying weapons in public, legions of FPI members did just that outside the presidential palace earlier this year.
During the fasting month of Ramadan at the beginning of the year, ranks of FPI acolytes, in long white Muslim garb and wearing prominent long swords and knives, blockaded City Hall for a day, bringing administration to a halt. Reza helped to organise these and other similar displays of burgeoning Islamic assertiveness.
They won their point when Jakarta's Governor, Sutiyoso, agreed to close all nightspots across the city for the month. Before and since then, FPI-related groups have forced bar staff and prostitutes out of work in Bandung, Bogor and Jakarta by attacking nightlife areas.
But to talk with men such as Mr Reza, it is hard to remember the details. He is newly married and the proud father of a first child, looking forward to bringing up a large family at the same time as defending his faith as a full-time career. What spare time he has goes into his family and his faith.
His background – "from the masses", as he styles it – and that of many of his followers is typical of an increasingly activist youth culture. Islam, he says, is the only way forward because it speaks to the concerns of the masses.
He trained for this role for many years. After secondary school he pursued a degree in Islamic Studies at the Universitas Islam in Jakarta. He also spent almost three years in a pesantren, a Muslim boarding school, in East Java. Pesantrens are where dedicated young Muslim men live and study together.
"I only want to strengthen Islam, I don't want violence, I don't want to kill. I only want to support my brothers and sisters in Islam," he said. "So many times in our history the voice of the Muslims has not been heard."