Amrozi Bites The Dust

Amrozi goes to hell

Domestic politics or rather crafty fishing by police intelligence ?

The execution of the three Bali bombers has been perpetually postponed in a fashion rather similar to the trial of Soeharto. It’s a sensitive issue. The many millions of Indonesians who live in remote villages, far from television, many of whom are illiterate may have a different spin on the Amrozi case compared to someone who has Googled the topic on the net and stumbled upon this blog.

A lot of political and media information that reaches far flung communities often does so via the mosque during Friday mid-day prayers (Sholat Jumat) or in ever increasingly popular ‘road shows’ by the likes of Nuril Mustofa , who tour the country delivering fire-brand public sermons. These guys have billboards showing young clean faced bearded Imams ( Islamic equivalent to preachers) dressed in full Arabic garb – the boards the size of which put Malboro to shame. They had a ‘show’ in our neighborhood a few months ago. Spanduks (promotional banners) lined the length of jl. Warung Buncit. By seven o’clock in the evening, bang on peak hour, around 2000 people had amassed and were laying prayer mats across two lanes of the main road. Traffic was forced to jump the busway barrier in order to pass. There was a massive jam. It took me an extra hour to complete my otherwise 30 min journey home. I’d be real surprised if there were any formal requests made to local police or department of roads, as are the requirements for any public meetings that take place in Jakarta, for this particular ‘meet’. These firebrand political religious groups display a real sense of arrogance in their quest to ‘morally reform’ South East Asia. Mustofa is actually promoted by Bakries’ phone company. He has impressive representation around many parts of the Jabotek area. I wonder if there are any bigger fish in the international arena that also support such groups as these ?

In a country with such a massive population (in excess of 200 million) it is easy to make an impression on the poor who have little education and less resources to aid them in decision making. Should an outsider offer free education , albeit rather heavily enriched with a hard-line religious flavour, he will be readily received with open thankful arms.

America really wants to take heed of this kind of phenomena. The Bush administration’s ‘crusade’ to stamp out terrorism and religious fanaticism was a foolish mistake. Well it was mainly a cover up to gain footing in competitive oil producing nations actually, but the media hype and anti-Islamic spin that has resulted has had far reaching xenophobic consequences.

While the West is busy over turning rocks and checking under beds for terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan, silent minorities are investing in Islamic boarding schools and publishing houses distilling their own brand of anti-West philosophy. And this is certainly a smarter more effective approach reaching entire communities in a seemingly non-violent way. Would it not be far more effective for Western governments to make a concentrated effort and monitored investment in the improvement of the nation wide sub-standard public education system over here ? I’m not suggesting Bible class in every school, but empowering the next generations with effective learning and decision making skills that are sadly lacking in present day schools. Show the kids how to think for themselves and they are less likely to be misguided by all the fanatic retort. A fate that befell those three poor fools from Semudra. Pawns in a scheme to generate a religious political divide.

Amrozi was an idiot. Could it really have been so easy to brainwash these men into strapping bombs to themselves in the name of God ? Show me where it says that is how to act as a good Muslim in the Al’Quaran ? When the only access to education is the likes of a warped fanatic such as Basir preaching how to get to heaven and get some revenge on the way, it is very possible. Take away education and you take away the ability to make logical conclusions. A lot of people act on impulsive emotion because they simply don’t have anything else to act upon. The laughing Amrozi can not begin to even comprehend the extend of the atrocities he committed. His brain was never taught to. He and his family cry out ‘injustice’ at the notion of his impending execution in much the same manner a child would cry out ‘It’s not fair !’ when half his chocolate is broken off to give to one of his siblings. It’s a non-thought-out emotional reflex action.

Now here’s the real clincher. The Semudra brothers were three little nobodies plucked from a tiny village by a calculating , communally vocal and highly convincing higher authority. They reacted quickly. They reacted emotionally. The only teaching they had taught them to follow, not to think. So what of the few hundred thousand illiterate villagers whose only understanding of this incidence is what they hear from word of mouth ? How are they likely to react ? No wonder the government is being highly cautious about how they handle meting out justice .

My mother in law is a devote Muslim. She has not been to Mecca yet. We are a bit concerned that the heat might be too much for her. However all her neighbors call her ‘Ibu Haj.’- a title reserved for those who have gained purification while on pilgrimage to Mecca. When discussing the evening news, she retorts ‘Why don’t they just get a shotgun and get it over with ! They are a disgrace to my religion !’

Well if you ask me Mum, rather than take their lives as they took others, perhaps it would be more fitting to take from them their idea of religious identity. For what they did was not only cold blooded senseless murder, but also slander on the righteous followers of Islam. Strip them of their robes , shave their beards and heads, take away their books and mats. Make them understand that what they have done is not perceived by anyone with an education as a religious act but only as an act of senseless terrorism . This would strike a more effective blow to the real instigators of the bombing and in doing so would hopefully bring a more humane sense of justice to lose who have lost their loved ones.

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