Markus Junianto Sihaloho – A former senior security official experienced in fighting terrorism said on Thursday that deradicalization programs for terror suspects and their supporters should be included in any new Indonesian antiterrorist laws.
Brig. Gen.(ret.) Suryadharma Salim, a former head of the police's Densus 88, said the elite counterterrorism unit had introduced such a program, but it lacked a legal basis.
Suryadharma said extremism would never be stopped just by force, and that initiatives such as deradicalization programs were also necessary. "If the government plans to amend the Anti-Terrorism Law, a de-radicalization program must be a part of it," Suryadharma said.
Ansyad Mbai, the head of the antiterror desk at the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, said that police powers in the Anti-Terrorism Law were still too limited.
He said the authority of the police to detain a terror suspect should be extended to two years, adding that the country was too "soft" on terrorists and should adopt a Malaysian-style internal security law.
Hendropriyono, the former head of the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), also said that brute force would never succeed in stopping terrorism if not combined with other techniques.
"Terrorism must be tackled through a sweeping deradicalization of the terrorists and other people involved in sectarian violence," Hendropriyono said.
He said that many Indonesians tended to accommodate a culture of violence that terrorist networks could exploit. Such networks, he said, would thrive and grow larger unless the government introduced programs to get to the root of the problem.
He suggested that the government spearhead and oversee a civilian-led movement aimed at opposing any form of violence. "If citizens have the ability to bravely oppose the culture of violence, then terrorism would not be able to grow," Hendropriyono said.
Nasir Abbas, a former member of regional terror group Jemaah Islamiyah who now assists the police, said that terrorism would never be stopped without choking off the terror networks at the community level.
He said there were always ordinary citizens who would support terrorists by offering them shelter and protection from the authorities. "We must become more aware of this kind of thing," Nasir said.
Hendropriyono said most of the money collected by terrorists in the country was used to maintain established networks or to build new networks.
"It does not cost a lot to make a bomb," he said. "Terrorists usually need more money for infiltration, observation and to establish new networks. By focusing on the communities in which terrorists can seek shelter, we can stop people at the grassroots from funding violence."